


Tessellate

by thinkpink



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: ABO World Building, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, EWE, M/M, Mostly Canon Compliant, Mpreg, afab language, besides the epilogue, discussions of abortion, mild depression
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-19
Updated: 2019-02-19
Packaged: 2019-10-31 09:17:13
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 21,567
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17846663
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thinkpink/pseuds/thinkpink
Summary: Everyone is moving on from the war and their time with Voltron and Lance wants nothing more than to do the same. It's hard when everyone in the world recognizes you as a former paladin, and you're having trouble moving past the death of your first love.Getting pregnant really doesn't help.





	Tessellate

**Author's Note:**

> just messin' around with some abo world building. if anything is unclear or if you just want clarification on where my head was at, shoot me a comment, i love to chit chat
> 
> title is from the song of the same name by alt-j. it's about someone moving on from their ex by falling in love with someone else (although some suggest it's about a love-triangle or even a threesome. it's up for interpretation lol)
> 
> this is also probably the least i've edited in a while, so lemme know if there's anything glaring

They hadn’t used a condom, but pregnancy outside of heat was nearly impossible. And Lance knew Shiro - knew that he was clean and healthy and that if he wasn’t, he would have insisted on protection.

So it hadn’t seemed like a big deal at the time but now, staring down at the positive pregnancy test in his hand, Lance wanted to go back in time and punch himself. Maybe Shiro too.

Lance sighed, rubbing at his temples – willing away the impending migraine.

He could have an abortion. He should, really. 

There was no way he was prepared to raise a child. The loss of Allura was still fresh in his mind, a mere six months ago.

And he and Shiro weren’t in a relationship.

They hardly talked, honestly, both so caught up in their own lives post war. Shiro constantly away with the Atlas crew while Lance had taken on assistant-teaching at the academy. 

Even stationed at the same garrison, they rarely crossed paths.

Lance had a feeling Shiro had forgotten all about their drunken coupling, quick and frantic after yet another tortuous award ceremony. 

It was so minimal that even Lance could pretend it hadn’t happened, if he tried hard enough.

Right now, though, he was staring at the irrefutable proof that it had.

It had only been a few weeks, less than six. He could schedule an appointment with the clinic right now and put all of this behind him by the end of the week.

Lance had no issues with abortion. He knew his sister had gotten one and suspected his mother had as well - when Lance was almost too young to pick up on the subtext between his parents, but his mother was already feeling too old to go through the rigors of pregnancy again. 

His family had always been very pro-choice, and if he told his mother what was going on, there would have been no judgement from anyone.

But despite all of this...

Losing Allura had been painful, but perhaps the most painful aspect of it all had been the fact that Lance knew she had never loved him the way he’d loved her.

Just like he knew that his crush on Shiro had never been fully returned, the one-time lapse in judgement a poor decision on Shiro’s part after they’d both commiserated over red wine and shared loss.

He had his family, who he knew with all his heart loved him, and always would. But he was still the youngest of five children, one of countless cousins.

Lance had never had someone all to himself. Someone to love unconditionally and see it mirrored back.

He had time to think this through. A quick internet search told him he had until the twenty-forth week, which seemed like years away.

Sighing to himself, Lance wrapped the pregnancy test in tissue and threw it into the bathroom trash can. 

+

“The flight simulator is only one way to master the art of piloting. Never discount your class time, or the time spent studying—”

Lance tuned the instructor out – along with half the class. 

TAing was boring a lot of the time, most of his energy directed at grading papers and tutoring the students, but it was a start. He wanted to be a fully-fledged flight instructor one day, and even a paladin of Voltron and savior of the universe had to start from the bottom.

It was easy, and it kept his mind occupied. Grading and tutoring were great distractions, and since the death of Allura, distractions were needed. 

Lance had never been comfortable being alone with his thoughts for too long. 

At the signal from the instructor, Commander Morris, Lance grabbed the papers he had ready to return and stood up.

This was a mistake, and with little warning or fanfare, Lance turned quickly to the trashcan next to his desk and vomited. 

Gasps of surprise and unconcealed disgust broke out across the classroom, and before he’d even had the chance to straighten back up, Morris was at his side, her small hand touching his back lightly.

“Lance, are you okay?” She sounded genuinely worried and shame stabbed at him. 

Wiping his mouth, he turned to face her, eyes guilty. 

“Sorry Maria, not feeling so hot today.” He tried to smile, but from the way she was looking at him it was probably more of a grimace. 

Sharp green eyes squinted in doubt, and when she next spoke, it was a whisper low enough to not carry to the students.

“You’ve been quite ill recently, Lance. Are you sure there’s nothing troubling you?”

Shaking his head, hoping that his face wasn’t giving him away, he waved off her concern.

“I’m fine, don’t worry about me.” He winked for good measure.

“Yes, well, either way—I want you to go to medical. Right now.”

Lance had worked with Maria Morris long enough to know that when she gave direction, she expected it to be followed, without hesitation. She was smart, a brilliant pilot, and Lance respected her immensely – so usually this was not an issue. 

Any thought of arguing was quickly ignored by the determination on her face.

“Okay, okay—I’ll go.”

Looking past her shoulder, he could see the entire class watching him, varying levels of interest across the group. 

“Welp, guess you guys are rid of me for the day!”

“Will your office hours still be available this evening?” Someone asked, and before Lance couldn’t even give thought to the question, Morris cut in.

“No, tutoring will be canceled for tonight.”

Lance sighed, equal parts happy for the chance to rest and annoyed for the open, empty evening he now had before him.

“Feel better, Officer McClain!” 

A few other cadets echoed the sentiment, and Lance smiled reassuringly, waving off their concern. 

The second he was outside of the classroom, the expression dropped from his face. Pressing the palms of his hands into his eyes, Lance exhaled slowly. 

It had been twelve weeks and he still had yet to tell anyone. He hadn’t even seen Shiro in that time, the Atlas away on some important diplomatic mission. 

And though he knew technically he had until twenty-four weeks, his slowly expanding waist-line said otherwise. It was hardly noticeable, even to himself, but it was only going to get bigger. 

Commander Morris was probably right—he did need to see a doctor sooner or later. Might as well make it now.

Hands in his pockets and shoulders slumped, he began the long walk. 

Even dragging his feet as he was, Lance found himself outside the med bay before he knew it.

Thursday afternoon was clearly not a busy time for the medical staff, and multiple faces looked up at his entrance. A muscular guy, biceps straining the sleeves of his hospital scrubs, smiled at Lance from the intake desk.

“Officer McClain, what brings you in today?”

One thing he had yet to get used to was everyone knowing his name. It always put him at an uncomfortable disadvantage. Glancing down quickly as he walked over, Lance was relieved to find a name tag that read T. Kim, Nurse Practitioner.

“Oh uh, hey Kim,” the nurse flashed a pretty smile that left him feeling more confident. “I was hoping I could have a doctor check me out, uh, privately.”

He glanced above Nurse Kim’s head just in time to see the curious faces snap back to their tasks. He was also trying to get used to how interested everyone seemed to be in his life.

“Of course,” Kim spoke, tapping at his computer, presumably to pull up schedules or records or whatever else information medical kept. Probably a lot more than Lance wanted to know.

“What’s this visit in regard to?” 

Lance pursed his lips, unsure how much to admit. Nurse Kim seemed nice enough, and he probably had some sort of ethics code that prevented him from sharing patient information, but still. He wasn’t exactly thrilled to admit he’d gotten knocked up accidentally.

“Oh it’s—just a general check-up, omega type stuff.” 

Lance didn’t think he imagined the way the nurse slid his eyes downward quickly, his expression suddenly intrigued. He masked it quickly though, which Lance appreciated. He could smell the man was an alpha, and he just didn’t have the energy to even pretend to be flattered.

“Well, if you’ll give me just a moment, I can get you all set up with our on call, Doctor Hofstede. Take a seat right over there while you wait.”

Throwing up a lazy and unnecessary salute, Lance moved to take a seat in the offered chair. He wasn’t exactly upset to take a load off for a second. His general state of being lately was an awful mix of nausea and vertigo. 

After a rest that was far too brief, Nurse Kim poked his head around the corner and called him back. 

Taking his vitals, Lance doing his best to ignore the larger than usual number on the scale, the nurse then led him into another room and left.

Lance looked at his options. A stool on wheels, that was very likely for the doctor, a folding chair squeezed into one corner, or the examination table, covered in crinkly paper, high enough that his feet would dangle once he’d taken a seat. 

Knowing it was his inevitable destination Lance hopped up onto the table, tearing the paper beneath his sweaty hands, kicking his feet aimlessly like a kid.

He hated the doctor. The castle of lions’ med-pods, while disorienting and sometimes murderous, had been a huge relief to his nerves. Just the smell of latex and Lance was transported to his childhood and the frequent trips for migraines. 

And _needles_ – no thanks.

In the midst of his inner turmoil and repressed memories, the door opened, and the doctor entered. 

“Officer McClain, a pleasure to meet you. My name is Blake Hofstede.” He held out his hand and Lance reached forward to shake it. 

“Please, call me Lance.” Being constantly addressed by his rank had turned out to not be as thrilling as his younger self had imagined. 

“Of course, call me Blake as well,” the doctor replied. He was on the shorter side, soft blonde hair and pale blue eyes. His scent was mild, a beta or an omega Lance was sure, but the astringent sting of medical grade cleaner was too strong to tell.

“Your vitals all look quite healthy, Lance, what brings you in today?”

Lance cut right to the chase.

“I’m pregnant,” he let that bomb drop for a second before continuing. “About twelve weeks, give or take, and I haven’t been to the doctor yet, so I figured…”

He trailed off, shifting his eyes around the room before coming back to the doctor, who looked only mildly surprised.

“Was that the date of your last heat cycle?” 

Lance shook his head. 

“I wasn’t in heat, I haven’t had one since I returned from—you know. I was on suppressants then.”

Now the doctor looked slightly incredulous. 

“Pregnancy outside of heat is incredibly rare—and can be rather hard on the mother’s body.” 

Lance felt himself shrink at that. He’d known the first part, but the second was new info.

“Hard…how?” 

Blake moved to the counter, opening drawers and cabinets with purpose. 

“More prone to morning sickness, generally for longer than average. Insomnia or intense fatigue. Cramping due to lack of uterine preparation, this also attributes to longer labor and delivery. Gestational diabetes. Gestational hypertension.”

_Dear god._ Lance leaned away, as if distance would give him more time to process the doctors words. The crinkling of the paper liner drew his attention, and he turned to look at Lance apologetically.

“Forgive me, I don’t mean to scare you. It’s always better to be aware, so you can keep an eye out for any symptoms. Those last two are most dangerous.”

“I don’t even know if I want to keep it.”

The doctor paused. “Oh well, of course you still have time to decide, but I do recommend sooner rather than later.”

Lance nodded, looking down to see the syringe in Blake’s hand. He cringed, and the doctor looked sympathetic. 

“For now, we’ll act as if you mean to go on, just for your health and safety. I’m going to draw some blood to send off to the labs. They’ll run the basic tests”

Knowing he had no choice, Lance sighed, pulling off his uniform jacket. He watched dispassionately as the doctor swabbed his inner arm and quickly injected the needle, drawing multiple vials of blood. 

Once bandaged, the pertinent information entered into the computer, Blake turned to him.

“So, tell me how you’ve been feeling lately.”

“Tired, mostly, and nauseous. And recently I’ve been really dizzy? Which only makes me _more_ nauseous.” 

The doctor nodded. 

“Your medical record says you have a history of migraines?”

“Yeah, since I was little. I don’t get them very often anymore though.”

“I’ll add medication for that to the script, just in case. They can be more frequent during pregnancy for those prone to them.”

Lance sighed, nodding along. So far, everything the doctor told him was making this entire situation seem more and more bleak. He’d probably be better off getting rid of it, before anyone else was the wiser.

His hand dropped to his stomach subconsciously, and only the doctor’s gaze dropping to look made him realize. 

Blushing slightly, he moved his hand back to the table, wiping the moisture onto the paper.

“Generally, those considering abortion choose not to get a sonogram, but I do have to tell you that if you’re interested, the twelve-week mark is generally a good time to take a look.”

_A sonogram._ He hadn’t even considered that. 

His hand moved back to his stomach and without even pausing to consider the ramifications, he spoke.

“I’d like one, please—If that’s possible. Right now.”

The doctor smiled, no hint of judgement on his face. Lance decided right then that he liked Doctor Blake.

“I can pull the equipment into the room, no problem. While I’m gone just remove your shirt and unbutton your pants, no need to take them off.”

Lance was already gripping the hem of his undershirt, whipping it off before the doctor had even fully closed the door behind himself.

Once suitable undressed, Lance laid back against the table, reclining awkwardly. His stomach was only slightly distended, but in that moment, it seemed huge. 

Once returned, the doctor jumped into it quickly. Squirting cold gel over Lance’s stomach, he pulled the screen into a position that they would both be able to look at, before pressing a small hand-held device against his stomach.

Holding his breath, Lance looked to the screen, eagle eyes searching through what looked like television static. After a few moments, a dark circle appeared on the screen, a smaller blob in the middle. It was actually kind of baby-shaped.

Lance could actually feel his heart rate shoot up, his pulse pounding in his ears, throat suddenly tight. 

“If we do this—” The doctor pressed four fingers firmly against his stomach, rolling smoothly across his skin. On the screen, the small baby-shaped blob moved. 

“Oh my god.” His breathing was coming harder and Lance became painfully aware of the fact that his eyes were growing wet. 

“Well, sometimes you can see now, but looks like there’s not going to be a sex reveal today. If you’re interested, we can check back in a few weeks and you should be able to see.”

Lance’s face snapped to the doctor. “Sex?” He asked, somewhat stupidly.

“Well, we won’t know the baby’s gender unless it’s born but you can find out the sex in utero if you’d like.”

The sex. Of his baby.

That was _his_ baby. 

He was going to be a mom.

The doctor helpfully cleaned him up, wiping away the gel on his stomach, while Lanced experienced his epiphany.

“Once you’ve made you decision on whether to carry to term or not—”

“I am!” he interrupted. “I mean, I have—That is, I’m going to keep it.”

The doctor nodded in a matter that conveyed clinical neutrality. 

“Then we’ll set up your next appointment with that in mind. Would you like me to print out the sonogram?”

Lance left the med bay with a brown paper bag full of medicine and vitamins, and a strip of black and white photos. He tucked them safely into his breast pocket, though there was very little chance of anyone seeing them. 

Most of the base was too awed to approach him and the only friends he had that weren’t in space were buried deep in the engineering block.

Once back in his quarters, Lance changed quickly into a soft tee-shirt and sleep pants, laying down in his bed despite how early it was.

_So._ He was really going to do this. 

There was a part of Lance that knew this was always going to be his choice, even with how often he’d told himself it wasn’t the smart move. 

Well, whatever. He’d gone this far in life making decisions based on his intuition and he wasn’t about to start questioning it now. 

Allura probably would have called him out for it. Not that he would be in this situation if she were still around. Or maybe _she_ would have been the alpha to knock him up and not Shiro.

God, he wished she were still alive. Not even to be with necessarily, just to talk to. Someone to tell what was going on. She might have even been excited for him. 

Lance reached up to rub at the crest of his cheekbone, wishing not for the first time that he could feel the marks that she’d left. Instead it was smooth as ever, a little flush from exhaustion. 

Looking over towards his nightstand, he started to reach for his phone. He needed to tell his mom, at the very least. 

His entire family had relocated to a suburb a few hours out from the garrison. They’d all wanted to be closer, but it was honestly the nearest option.

He missed them, but it wasn’t too awful of a drive every few weeks. And he sometimes had Veronica around, which was nice. 

His mother picked up on the second ring. 

“Lance, baby, you okay?”

It was always the first question out of her mouth anytime he called. 

“I’m good, mom, thanks.”

“Oh good! You know you’re calling during dinner time?” Her voice changed from one of concern to something more lighthearted.

“Oh, man, I’m sorry! I’ll call back—” Of course he’d forgotten to check the time.

“Baby, relax, I’m only playing with you,” his mother quickly assured. “Are you sure there isn’t something going on?”

“Uh—” Lance sat up, his heart racing. “Actually, I wanted to talk to you but really, I don’t want to interrupt dinner.”

“Lance, I’ve already walked away from the table, tell me what’s going on.”

Letting go of the breath he hadn’t realized he was holding, Lance ran his hands through his hair. Maybe this was a mistake, he had barely come to terms with the fact that he was going to have a baby, did he really need to spread it around?

_”Lance.”_

It was the sharp reprimand he knew so well from childhood, and like Pavlov’s dog he immediately reacted.

“I’m pregnant.”

He paused, not sure how much more he should say. After a few moments of tense silence, his mom finally spoke.

“Are we happy about this?”

Lance huffed out a weak laugh, falling back against the bed.

“I will be, eventually.”

She tsked. “Is the father in the picture?” 

“Um, no—I don’t think so.”

“Lance, you haven’t told them? Do you not want them involved?”

Scrubbing at his face, Lance sighed. “I’m not sure, I haven’t really thought about it. I was on the fence about even keeping it until today.”

“What changed?”

“I had a sonogram.”

“Oh, Lance,” his mother’s voice lifted in telltale excitement. “Did you keep the pictures?”

“Yeah, I’ll bring you some.”

“Come home this weekend, baby, we have lots to talk about.”

Lance nodded, though he knew she couldn’t see him.

“Yeah, I will. And uh—can you not tell Veronica? I don’t mind the rest of the family, but I—I don’t really want it getting back to the guys in space. They have enough going on.”

His mother agreed, but he could sense suspicion in her voice. They talked for a few more minutes, Lance mostly giving her the clinical details, leaving out the doctor’s concerns or his own messy feelings. She’d pry it all out of him eventually. 

As they said their goodbyes, his mother pressed upon him one last thing.

“It’s going to be okay. We’re all here for you—and your baby.”

+

“Your blood pressure is a little higher than I’d like to see it, we’ll run a few tests to rule out anything serious. Until then, you’ll need to relax as much as possible. I’ll send word to your chain of command that you’ll be on medical leave.”

Being pregnant was the _wooorst._

He could stop barfing, even though morning sickness was definitely supposed have passed by now. He was constantly tired until the second he laid down to sleep, where he then stared at the ceiling for hours. 

Only a few in command knew about his pregnancy but he’d already gotten _looks_ from people. 

Who still judged single mothers? What year was this?

And now his only distraction from all of that was being taken away. TAing wasn’t exactly his dream job but it did make him feel useful – gave him a sense of purpose. 

Gave him a reason to get out of bed every day.

His silence must have transmitted some feeling, because Blake turned from the computer to give Lance a sympathetic smile. 

“This doesn’t last forever Lance, and it’s better to be overly cautious, especially with spontaneous pregnancies.”

“Yeah, I get it.” Didn’t mean it wasn’t _the worst._

“On a brighter note, we can check the sex today if you’d like!”

Lance waved him off, his decision already made. 

“Nah, I think I’m gonna pass. This babies gonna be a surprise in every way possible.”

Blake grinned at his joke and they wrapped up the appointment. 

At eighteen weeks, Lance was smaller than he expected. He could see it himself, naked in front of his mirror. His stomach was definitely rounding out—he could even feel movement sometimes! But under his heavy uniforms, it wasn’t obvious at all. 

The doctor assured him it wasn’t unusual not to show at this stage, but what was most surprising to Lance was how much he wanted it to happen. Not for him to see, but other people.

Irrefutable proof that at some point, someone had desired him enough to fuck him. 

It was embarrassing to think about, his need for others esteem—but he still couldn’t seem to push it down. Even after everything he’d done, all the praise they’d been given as paladins and heroes. Still, he craved something more, something he’d never been able to figure out himself. 

So caught up in his increasingly depressing thoughts, Lance turned a corner towards his quarters and smacked directly into another person.

Though startled by the impact, his hands dropping immediately to his belly, he was even more alarmed when hands grasped his biceps tightly, holding him at arm’s length.

“Lance!” 

It was _Keith._ And what was more, he seemed excited to see Lance. 

“Keith, wow,” Lance recovered quickly, allowing himself to be pulled into an unexpected hug. “When did you get back?”

“Last night, not sure how long I’ll be here though. I was coming to find you.”

Lance turned disbelieving eyes towards Keith. He looked good—happy, healthy. His hair was longer and pulled back into a messy bun, purple eyes relaxed.

“Finally got a jacket that actually fits, huh?” Lance jibed, pulling at the dark leather. 

Keith rolled his eyes. “Don’t start in on me about clothes fitting. Looks like you might need to jump up a size on that uniform jacket soon. Classroom life making you soft?”

It was a joke and Lance knew it, but he still froze, eyes darting past Keith, toward his rooms.

“Whoa, Lance—I’m totally just kidding.” He looked repentant, hands held up in front of him.

Lance looked around, taking in their surroundings. They were in the hallway leading towards the Junior Officer’s quarters, but it was large and open, with people heading their way. 

Making a quick decision, Lance shot his hand out to grasp the cuff of Keith’s jacket, pulling him down the hall.

“Lance, what is going on—”

“I’ll tell you when we get to my rooms, just hurry up.”

They arrived quickly, but with the added bonus of Lance being out of breath, his vertigo worse than ever.

The second his door was unlocked, he darted into the kitchen, vomiting into the trashcan. He could hear the door close, and Keith follow him. 

He was surprised when instead of questioning him, Keith reached into his cabinets to find a glass, filling it with water to hand to him. 

Taking the glass gratefully, he downed half in one go, leaning against the counter like it was his lifeline, breathing heavily.

Keith watched him only for a few seconds before he asked: “Are you pregnant?”

“Ha!” Lance huffed, looking at him coyly. “When did you get so observant?”

He drained the glass and set it into the sink, heading into the living room to sink into the couch. Keith followed behind, taking a seat on his coffee table, directly in front of him. 

“Are you seeing someone?” He sounded hopeful, like he was invested in Lance’s happiness for some reason.

Lance shook his head. “No, I’m not. It was a one-time thing, I wasn’t even in heat. It just—happened. 

Keith eyes went wide, his pupils slightly cat-like – a telling sign of his shock.

“I thought that was just a myth.” He said it nervously, which didn’t surprise Lance at all. Keith was an omega too and he’d likely had unprotected sex without thought.

“Oh it’s real my friend, and it fucking sucks. Makes pregnancy that much shittier—I just got put on medical leave.”

“Is everything okay?”

Lance waved off his concern. “It’s as fine as it can be, the doctor’s just being cautious.”

Keith frowned, his eyebrows pulled down in dismay, before he could hide the expression.

“So uh—who’s the father?”

He’d known this question was coming, but he still wasn’t sure what he wanted to say. Telling Keith meant it was likely to get back to Shiro, and Lance didn’t know how he felt about that. 

He contemplated making up a name, or even telling Keith he didn’t know them—but he didn’t think that lie would last very long.

Sighing deeply, his laid a hand over his face. 

“Look, I haven’t really told anyone yet. Not even…the dad.”

“Pidge doesn’t know?” His voice held skepticism.

“I haven’t really seen her in a while.” Over four months to be exact, at the same award ceremony he’d gotten knocked up at. “The engineering bay is on the other side of the garrison and she’s busy—” 

“Lance, Pidge is never too busy to see you.” 

Years of experience told him otherwise, but Lance kept his mouth shut. 

“Have you really not told anyone? Not any of your friends?”

“My friends are kind of all in space.” It sounded pathetic even to his own ears.

Keith leaned back, and Lance didn’t bother looking at his face, not interested in seeing the pity that was definitely there.

He was quiet for a moment before he spoke. “Are you alone here?”

The question felt like a knife, splitting him open so that Keith could look at everything he kept hidden.

“I have my family. I told them! Well, not Veronica but—”

“Why not Veronica?”

_Fuck._ Way to go Lance, smooth move. 

“She’s out in space,” he backpedaled. “I don’t wanna bother her with this.”

“Lance you being pregnant wouldn’t bother her, she’s your sister. She loves you.”

“It’s not really a big deal.” He was trying to force nonchalance onto his face, but Keith’s expression told him he was missing the mark. 

“Who is the father, Lance?”

God, leave it to Keith to round back to his original question, his tenacity was a real pain in Lance’s ass sometimes.

Resigned, he gave in. “Look, if I tell you who it is, you have to promise not to tell _anyone._ Honestly, just stay quiet about the whole thing.”

Keith considered him, face contemplative. At Lance’s _get on with it_ expression, he finally nodded.

“Yeah, I won’t tell.”

Taking a deep breath, Lance said it out loud for the first time.

“It’s Shiro.”

Keith stood up abruptly, scooting the table back with his force. 

_”What?”_

He took three steps away from Lance, before swiftly turning around to return, sitting directly next to him on the couch – almost too close. 

“When did you—are you seriously— _how?”_

Seeing Keith so flustered was almost enough to make him laugh. His obvious disbelief, however, was telling.

“At the Altean awards ceremony. We were both drunk—honestly, I doubt he even remembers. It was really left-field and we never talked about it afterward. It just—happened.”

“Jesus Shiro,” Keith huffed, sounding unexpectedly angry. 

“We both—” 

“Lance, you were a wreck that day. Being on New Altea only six months after Allura’s death? We were _all_ concerned.”

Keith reached over to touch his knee and Lance jumped. He looked at him apologetically but didn’t remove his hand.

“We tried to stay close to you as much as possible, just to buffer some of the other guests—everyone wanted to talk to us. Shiro was _supposed_ to take you back to your room and stay long enough to make sure you were okay.”

Lance felt oddly dizzy at the knowledge that everyone had been so worried about him—going out of their way to help. 

“Well, he did take my back to my room—” Keith snorted. “I had a bottle of that ridiculous wine Coran gave us. We started drinking and got to talking—I didn’t know Shiro’s boyfriend had died.”

“Ex,” Keith was quick to correct. 

“Anyway, I don’t even remember who started it. Knowing me, it was probably my fault.”

“Fuck, Lance. This is so—” He pulled at his hair in frustration, before turning to Lance full on. “Look, you have to tell Shiro.”

Lance bristled. “I will, eventually. Or maybe I won’t, I don’t know, I haven’t really decided.”

“Seriously? You need to tell him.”

“Why? He’s not my alpha, I don’t owe him anything. And if I don’t put his name on the birth certificate he won’t even have parental rights.”

“Lance! He needs to take responsibility—”

“No!” Lance pulled away, sliding out from under Keith’s overly warm hand. “I’m not going to be anyone’s _responsibility.”_

Fuming, he stood up, closing his eyes until the lightheadedness passed. 

“You think I don’t know what Shiro will do?” Lance turned to stare down at Keith who was watching him with wide eyes. “He’ll do the honorable thing, like he always does. God, he might even offer to marry me out of some horrible sense of obligation. He’ll leave the Atlas and stay at the garrison doing some stupid job that has no meaning and makes him miserable.”

Lance’s voice was trembling, and when he breathed it sounded wet.

“He probably doesn’t even want kids—” 

“Lance, you’re assuming a lot here.” Keith watched him as he slowly sank down, sitting on the coffee table, reversing their positions. 

His eyes were wet, and he could feel it gathering at the corner, ready to spill at any second. 

“I’m not ready to face it. I don’t know if I ever will be.”

“I won’t pretend I know what Shiro will do if you tell him, but I do know that this is something he would want to know.”

Lance swiped at his eyes, looking anywhere but at Keith. 

“You’re not an obligation Lance. Any alpha would be lucky to have you.”

“Jesus Christ,” Lance set his head in his hands, looking down at the floor. “Have I fallen so low that Keith Kogane is pep talking me?”

At the sound of Keith scoffing, Lance looked up archly. 

“I’m your _friend_ Lance, whether you want to admit it or not.”

He was right. Keith was his friend, one of the best ones. Sitting up straight, he wiped his face. 

“Well, I’ve had enough talking. You staying? I’m gonna order take-out.”

Keith graciously accepted the change of subject. 

“Take-out sounds good, who delivers here?”

After they’d placed their orders, they spread out on the couch, a rom-com Keith had rolled his eyes at – but Lance could tell her secretly wanted to watch – was waiting for him to hit play. 

Settling against the cushions, Lance had changed into pajamas, Keith looked interestedly at his stomach. 

“So how’s being pregnant?”

+

Keith left to rejoin the Blades a couple weeks later and slowly time passed. 

News of his pregnancy had spread. He was still on bedrest, but he ventured out occasionally now and then, lest he lose his marbles. At twenty-four weeks, he was obviously pregnant—and he tried his hardest to avoid conversation or even small talk as much as possible.

Really the only person he talked to regularly was his baby, which he’d taken to babbling inanely at throughout the day.

Commander Morris and some of the students sent him congratulation cards that had made him sob uncontrollably for an hour. 

The gossip mill was alive and well, and any info on the paladins was especially juicy. So it shouldn’t have surprised him when Pidge showed up at his door one night looking irritated.

She held her hands out to his stomach before looking up at him.

“What the fuck, Lance. Why did I have to hear about you being knocked up from some lab technician?”

Lance winced and moved back to give her room. 

“Uh hey Pidge.” 

Something in his voice must have given him away, and she turned to looked at him remorsefully.

“I’m really sorry I haven’t come by lately. I was working on this project, and it seemed like such a big deal but now, ugh. I just—I shouldn’t have been so off the grid.”

Eyebrows lifting in surprise, he led them both to the couch. The mirroring of Keith’s visit was not lost on him.

“It’s fine, I know you’re really busy—” 

“It’s not an excuse,” Pidge was quick to cut him off. “I neglected our friendship and that sucks. Especially when you had all this to deal with.”

She gestured towards his stomach and the room as a whole. Like Lance’s whole life was just something to deal with.

It kind of was.

“I wish you had told me though,” she continued. “It’s Shiro’s isn’t it?”

Sweat broke out across his forehead as his heartrate spiked. Doctor Blake would be flipping his shit right now, as Lance looked around frantically for something to fan himself with. Grabbing a piece of junk mail off the coffee table, he turned back to Pidge.

“Why would you think—”

“You had a huge hickey the day after the awards ceremony, and I know you didn’t before Shiro took you back the night before.”

Damn. He couldn’t believe he’d been that obvious. He hadn’t even noticed the bruise. 

God what if the Alteans had noticed? A fat hickey on his throat, only a few months after Allura’s death? What must they have thought?

“Lance, you’ve gotta relax, I can practically see your pulse jumping.”

“Did anyone else see?” He tried not to sound frantic, but it was difficult.

“Not that I noticed,” she assured him. “Damn, I definitely never saw this coming. Were you close to heat?”

Lance shook his head. “No, it was a spontaneous pregnancy.”

She blew out a breath. “And I’m guessing you haven’t told him?”

Once again, he shook his head.

“I figured.” She sighed, looking at Lance thoughtfully. “You should tell him, but I know you know that.”

Lance looked away, not in the mood to talk about it.

“Look, I have to run by the aeronautics facilities. Can we grab lunch tomorrow?”

“I’m uh—not really supposed to leave my room.” 

“Perfect, I’ll bring lunch to you.” And then she was leaning in, wrapping her arms around him in an unusual display of affection, her alpha pheromones enveloping him comfortingly.

“I can’t wait to hear all about the baby!”

+

On the anniversary of Allura’s death, Lance laid in the dark of his room with the worst migraine he could ever remember having. 

+

“So who are you sleeping with?” Lance shoved a fry into his mouth, eyes shining with humor as Keith choked.

“What?” He grabbed his cup, sipping at the straw until he could breathe again.

They were on a patio table outside of one of the cafés across the garrison. It was nearing thirty-two weeks and going absolutely nuts sitting around his place all day. 

After a little arguing with his doctor, helped by Keith’s promise to keep an eye on him, he’d actually left the Junior Officer’s quarters. Being outside in the sunlight and warm breeze was even better than he’d imagined it. 

“I’m not—doing that,” Keith denied, his flushed cheeks belying his words. 

“Ugh Keith, don’t pretend. Do you know how horny these hormones are making me? I’m living vicariously through you! I need details!”

Keith made a face of disgust, though Lance could tell it was more for show. 

This was the second time Keith had been to visit him since he’d found out about the pregnancy. The last time they’d shared take out with Pidge and he’d laughed so much he almost forgot everything else going on in his life. 

It wasn’t that he wasn’t excited about the baby – he’d actually started ordering baby stuff online and looking at lists of names. It was just an ominous feeling that he couldn’t seem to shake off. Weighing over him.

He wasn’t sure how difficult it was for Keith to get away as often as he was to see Lance, but he couldn’t deny that it was incredibly welcome. Having someone around, sometimes crashing on his couch, that cared about him – it was more helpful than he wanted to admit.

Even though Keith started every visit with the same question: “Have you told Shiro yet?”

“Come on man, I’m dying over here!”

Keith rolled his eyes, stealing one of Lance’s fries. 

“How did you know?”

Lance snorted. “You’re so easy to read, Keith.”

He scoffed but relented. “Another blade—nobody you know.”

“Ooh!” Lance’s eyes lit up. “Are they full Galra? What’s it like?”

“They are and I’m not gonna give you any details, besides that it’s great.”

Lance sighed wistfully, setting his chin in his hand. 

“Jealous—I’m probably never gonna have sex again.”

Keith looked at him sympathetically. “You’ll meet someone, Lance. And hey! The bright side to pregnancy is you get at least two years without a heat.”

“Yeah, yeah.”

Heat alone could be awful, but he knew parenting a baby alone was going to be no picnic either.

Maybe he should tell Shiro. Everyone had been pushing him to, not just Keith and Pidge but his family too. They didn’t know who the father was, but they seemed convinced he would want to know.

“You should tell him.”

He looked up in surprise to find Keith watching him seriously.

“I’m not the only one that’s easy to read.”

Lance turned down to his fries. He’d been craving them so desperately all morning but now the sight of them, sitting soggy in a paper cup, made his stomach turn.

“Yeah, maybe.”

“No maybe, Lance. You know I’m right.”

Keith’s words remained with him for the rest of the day, late into the night. Propped up on a mountain of pillows, the only relaxing position that didn’t result in horrific heartburn, he stared at the coms tablet sitting innocently next to him.

He could do it. He could pick it up and send Shiro a message and he’d get it instantly. He could even video chat with him.

_Yeah fuckin’ right._

What was he supposed to say? _Oh hey, Shiro? How’s space? Teaching is kind of fun, I’m having your baby, by the way Keith says hi!_

There was no way he could just come out and say it. And it was highly unlikely Shiro was ever going to ask _hey, any chance you got pregnant from that one time we had sex when you weren’t even in heat?_

But the thing was…Lance kind of wanted to speak to him. All the pregnancy talk aside, Shiro was his friend, and he wondered about him – up there in space. He wanted to know what was going on, if Shiro was enjoying it as much as he thought he would.

And a smaller part of Lance wanted to know if Shiro missed him back. If he ever thought about what they’d done, if he regretted it or maybe – wanted to do it again.

Not that Lance would of course. He was as big as a house and he felt disgusting. His face was constantly breaking out and his stomach was starting to get stretch marks – no matter how much cream he used. 

He didn’t see it getting any better after the baby was born. New mothers weren’t exactly known for their glowing self-care routines. 

Lance reached for the tablet, sliding it unlocked. Taking a deep breath, he clicked open the garrison’s communication app, scrolling down until he found Captain Takashi Shirogane. 

Without overthinking it, he opened up the direct message and typed out:

**Me:** _hey_

Not the most creative, but anything else would have been too much.

Lance nearly dropped the tablet when he saw the dots pop up that indicated the other person was typing. 

**T. Shirogane:** _Lance! How are you? Isn’t it late there?_

**Me:** _oh yeah. but i don’t work tomorrow so_

**Me:** _thought i’d say hi_

**T. Shirogane:** _How’s teaching? Is it weird being on the other side of the classroom? It kind of freaked me out at first._

**Me:** _it’s weird expecting anyone to listen to me when i still feel like a kid but they actually do_

**T. Shirogane:** _I wish I could say that feeling goes away but I’m honestly waiting for someone on this ship to say: “Hey, what are you doing in the captain’s chair, cadet?”_

Lance grinned, the light of the screen glimmering in his eyes.

**Me:** _yeah right you were probably so authoritative the teachers asked you to give guest lectures_

**T. Shirogane:** _LOL I will neither confirm nor deny._

**T. Shirogane:** _I’m really happy to hear from you, Lance._

The text sent his heart racing, which immediately made his face flush in embarrassment. Inside, the baby squirmed, reacting to their mother’s obvious anxiety. 

Rubbing his hand against his stomach soothingly, Lance tried to breath slowly and evenly. 

**Me:** _sorry it took me so long_

**Me:** _things have been busy here_

Lance wasn’t sure if he wanted Shiro to pry or not.

**T. Shirogane:** _I bet. Keith mentioned having to go out there a lot lately, but he hasn’t said much about what’s going on. But he did mention he saw you! Did he tell you about his boyfriend? LOL_

Called it! Lance giggled, settling further into his pillows. 

**Me:** _all he told me is they’re a blade!_

**Me:** _so it’s a guy huh? any good looking?_

**T. Shirogane:** _Ha! I have to admit he is, which doesn’t surprise me. Keith is kind of picky._

**Me:** _pfft so shocked_

**T. Shirogane:** _Hey, I have a few minutes. Want to video chat?_

Oh god. Absolutely not. 

**Me:** _actually it’s kind of late and the light in my room is turned off and I’m kind of settled into bed_

**Me:** _sorry_

**T. Shirogane:** _:( That’s a shame, I would have liked to see your face._

Before Lance could react to a statement like _that_ Shiro was already sending another message.

**T. Shirogane:** _Well, I kind of have to get back to work. You should message me more often._

Fuck, he’d scared him off. 

**Me:** _i will_

Except that he doesn’t. 

Shaken by the conversation, by how easy it was to talk to Shiro like not a day had passed, Lance ignored it all.

He could almost write the whole thing off as a weird pregnancy dream until a few nights later when his coms tab pinged. 

It wasn’t so unusual for people to reach out to him through his coms tab these days. Pidge and Keith check in on him frequently, even Matt had taken to sending him memes now and then.

No one texted him this late though – so he knew immediately who it was even without looking at the name. 

It was a picture message, and when Lance clicked it open, he found a picture of a sprawling nebulae. Red and green, swirled through with purplish blue, interspersed with bright, glimmering stars.

**T. Shirogane:** _Space is still beautiful, even after everything._

Touching the photo with a shaky finger, he held it down until prompted to save or share. Instead, he set it as his background. 

**Me:** _glad to see some things never change_

**T. Shirogane:** _Makes everything else a little easier, I guess._

Lance was struck by the memory of the night they had sex. When Shiro had opened up to him and revealed how much he was struggling. 

It had been something of an equalizer. 

Where Lance’s grief and insecurity made him weak, Shiro’s made him strong. And that was something that further compounded Lance’s self-doubt – why couldn’t he just _move on_ the way Shiro had?

Except that Shiro hadn’t, not really. He was just better at managing it. Or maybe hiding it.

Getting drunk enough to fuck him made Lance think that maybe Shiro wasn’t managing it that well at all.

While Lance was busy pondering over Shiro’s mental health, another text came in.

**T. Shirogane:** _I hope you’re doing well, Lance._

**T. Shirogane:** _I think about you a lot._

He stared at the message with round eyes, before clicking the button on the side, turning it off. 

There was nothing he could have replied to that. Nothing that was honest. Nothing he was willing to admit.

Settling into bed, pushing pillows under his stomach and back, folding his favorite one underneath his head, Lance tried desperately to fall asleep. 

He was just beginning to drop off when he was seized with the realization that he kept his read receipts on. 

Shiro would have seen that he’d opened the message and never replied. 

The next morning, after a fitful night of half sleep, Lance turned the tablet back on. 

Shiro hadn’t replied again since he’d been ignored. 

He needed to say something back. He could easily tell him he’d fallen asleep, it had been the middle of the night after all. But he was already hiding so much from Shiro, lying to him now felt even worse. 

**Me:** _i think about you a lot too_

He sent the message and waited for a response. After a few minutes, he closed the app.

Shiro was probably upset he had ignored him. Or maybe he was asleep – Lance had zero idea what time it was up there.

Setting aside the tablet, and doing his best to ignore it, Lance went about his morning. A lot of his day involved lying around, which was unfortunate since lying down was ridiculously uncomfortable. 

Today though, he was going to work on putting together some of the baby furniture that had come in the mail.

An hour in, Lance was pouring sweat, crouched awkwardly over a disassembled crib. 

This was way harder than it needed to be. How did other pregnant people do this?

They didn’t usually, he remembered. Most mothers had fathers in the picture. 

Lance pulled his phone out of his pocket and pressed the third number on his very short favorites list. 

“What’s up, little mama?” Pidge asked brightly, popping gum into the phone. 

“Are you busy? If you are, it’s cool—”

“Nah, dude, not busy at all.” She sounded distracted and therefor busy, but Lance’s wasn’t going to argue.

“All this baby furniture came in and I’m just—not good at this.”

“Ugh, my cousin had a baby, that shit is worse than Ikea furniture. I’ll be there in twenty!”

Forty minutes later she was knocking on his door.

“Sorry, those interns are like babies—they need constant hand-holding.”

She moved into the room and took in the disaster area.

“Okay first off, are you planning to keep the crib in the living room? Cause it’ll be way easier if you set it up where it’s gonna go.”

“Shit, no. I didn’t even think of that.”

They moved everything into the bedroom, where Lance planned to keep the baby. With a one-bedroom apartment there weren’t a lot of options, and the idea of the baby sleeping in any other room made him nervous and lonely.

Lance crouched down to join her, but she waved him away. 

“Take a load off man, you’ll only get it my way.”

Thankful and secretly agreeing, Lance settled down with a pile of baby clothes and blankets, folding them neatly.

Pidge worked quickly, but it was still slow going. They chattered back and forth – Lance telling her all the baby names he was considering and Pidge ranking them by order of her favorites. She told him about the project she was working on and how much she wished Hunk was there to help her. 

Lance was midsentence, complaining about the false contractions he’d started having, when his tablet pinged and his faced snapped towards the nightstand.

He placed his hand against the floor and started to stand but Pidge was faster, shooting up to grab it.

“Don’t try to stand, it’s painful to watch. Here you—”

She paused, looking down at the tablet, before turning wide, excited eye to him.

“It’s Shiro.”

Lance could feel the flush burn across his cheeks as she handed him the tablet.

He slid the tablet unlocked and tapped on the messaging app. 

**T. Shirogane:** _Can we video chat?_

“He wants to video chat,” Lance gasped, clutching at his stomach.

“So call him!”

“What? No—” He looked around nervously, the room covered in baby paraphernalia. “I can’t, he doesn’t know—”

“You haven’t told him?” Her voice held disbelief and a hint of recrimination.

Lance glared at her. “We’ve only talked like twice, so no, it didn’t come up.”

“This is your chance!”

“Are you insane? What am I gonna do just pan down to my stomach and say _surprise?”_

“Ugh—fine. Don’t tell him. But you should definitely call.”

“No way Pidge, I look awful, my hair is all greasy and my face is fat—”

“Lance, you’re like—glowing and shit—”

“Uh yeah, it’s called oily skin and it’s making me breakout.”

Pidge rolled her eyes, so hard Lance thought it had to hurt. 

“You’re always gonna find excuses, and Shiro obviously wants to talk to you.”

She was right, and it was just as annoying as it ever was. 

“I’ll do it. But not now. I need to take a shower and clean up everything and also not be sitting in the middle of a pile of baby furniture packaging.”

“Fine. But you better do it. I’ll check with Shiro.”

“Pidge—”

“Don’t test me, Lance McClain.”

Lance huffed but unlocked the tablet once more.

**Me:** _i’m working on something right now will you be free in a few hours?_

“Do you know how punctuation works? I’ve been meaning to ask.” Pidge spoke right next to his ear from where she’d been reading over his shoulder, startling him.

“I used a question mark!” 

“And I’m shocked.”

Shiro replied almost immediately.

**T. Shirogane:** _Yes, whenever you’re free._

**Me:** _i’ll talk to you soon_

**T. Shirogane:** _I can’t wait :)_

“He can’t wait, Lance. With a smiley face. He totally likes you.”

“Oh my god, are you out of your mind?” He turned to look at her incredulously. 

She shrugged. “He never uses smiley faces when he talks to me.”

After that, Lance was a wreck. Pidge finished up the crib and changing table while Lance showered, and blow dried his hair. After, he plucked his eyebrows for the first time in months, rubbing the best exfoliator into his skin then moisturizing until he was half-way decent. He dabbed the rest with concealer.

He was tousling the ends of his hair of his hair artfully with pomade when Pidge leaned into the bathroom.

“I don’t think I even saw you this nervous with Allura.”

The moment the words were out of her mouth, she froze, and Lance could tell she hadn’t meant to say it. For the first time in a long time though, the mention of Allura didn’t make his heartbeat stutter. 

“I was never pregnant with her baby she had no idea about.”

Pidge snorted, relaxing. 

“I picked up all the trash, threw your laundry into the basket, _and_ washed your dishes. This place was kind of a wreck.”

Lance turned to her with gratitude in his eyes. 

“Pidge…” He reached out pulling her into a hug, which caused her to immediately stiffen.

“Whoa, I didn’t do it for the praise—oh!” She froze, still pressed up against him. “It kicked.”

He snorted, pulling her hand down to the bottom of his stomach where he knew the baby was most obvious. 

“That is so weird, oh my god. Is that comfortable?”

“Not really.”

Pidge shook her head and pulled away. “I’m so glad I don’t have to do that.”

Once she was gone, Lance paced around his room, trying on three different sweaters. They were all maternity tops he had ordered online and they fit nicely, but in that moment, he hated them all.

He pulled the third one off, looking down at his body critically. 

His stomach was round enough that he could barely see his toes and his breast were swollen and leaky. Not so big that anyone could notice under his clothes but just enough that Lance felt self-conscious. 

He’d never been built like Shiro or even Keith, but he’d had definition. He’d been sleek. _Svelte._

Pulling the closest sweater, a blue cashmere, Lance threw it over his head and stomped over to his nightstand to grab the tablet. Sitting down against the headboard, with a pillow shoved behind his lower back, he folded up a knee as much as possible and braced the tablet on top.

It lasted about ten seconds before Lance’s arm was burning from holding it up.

Irritated, he looked around the room, trying to come up with something better.

Spotting his laptop, he heaved himself out of bed, moving to the living room. Placing the laptop onto the coffee table, Lance sat down on the floor, back against the couch. 

Flipping on the camera, he looked at his own image. His belly was completely hidden, and even most of his chest. He almost looked normal.

Signing into the messaging app, Lance scrolled down to Shiro’s name. Instead of pressing the message icon, this time he pressed the little camera.

He didn’t breathe while the call rang. It was at the fifth chime when Lance finally exhaled. Maybe Shiro was busy?

Disappointed, and surprised by how much, Lance reached out to close the lid when the call connected. 

Shiro’s appeared on the screen, face harried and hair askew. 

“Sorry, I could not get Iverson to stop talking, and I had to book it to my room and—never mind. Hey.”

Lance smiled, already so glad that he’d chosen to call. 

“Hey there, Captain.” Lance leaned forward a little, propping his elbows on the table. 

“You look—really good.” Shiro’s eyes were flicking over the screen, looking at him thoroughly. 

“What!” Lance leaned away for a second, before moving back. “Shut up, I look awful. I’ve been, er—sick.”

Shiro’s face was instantly one of concern. 

“Is it serious? Are you still sick? I hope you’re not working while—”

Lance laughed. “I took some time off work, it’s nothing serious.” _Lie._

“Well I’m glad you’re not over-working yourself.” _If only._

“And you do look good, Lance. I’m really glad you called.” _Unbelievable._

Lance blushed, looking away before turning back. Shiro was smiling at him, that soft knowing smile that was hard to look away from.

“So how’s space?”

Shiro started talking and Lance was immediately engrossed. 

The mission sounded amazing, and all of the anecdotal stories Shiro told him made it seem almost like an adventure show.

“It sounds like a constant episode of Star Trek up there,” he commented, taking in the way Shiro was speaking so animatedly. 

“Needs more phaser fights and beautiful, naked ladies,” Shiro teased.

“Whoa boy, slow down. You’re describing my heaven.”

Shiro rolled his eyes, but he was still laughing. 

“What about you, how’s Earth?”

Lance paused, knowing this question was coming but still unprepared to answer. 

“Earth is…the same. And not.”

Shiro raised one eyebrow. “Very illuminating.”

Snorting a laugh, Lance shrugged. 

“Nothing too exciting going on—” _besides me having your baby_ “—so I don’t really have much to say.”

“Starting a new job is always exciting! And I’m sure you’re enjoying the ability to go out and enjoy your life—that’s the best part of not being a cadet anymore.”

Lance held back a sigh. Those were all things that he _should_ be excited about – had _planned_ to be excited about.

Losing Allura had been hard, but every day the pain had lessened just a little bit. He’d hoped that eventually he might be able to move on – meet someone else.

And if he hadn’t gotten pregnant, maybe he would have by now. 

Shiro must have been following this trail of thought. 

“Have you been…seeing anyone?”

Lance looked at him fully, try to decipher his oddly unreadable face, before shaking his head. 

“No, not really.” 

Shiro’s expression turned sympathetic and Lance felt the burn of bile at his throat. He didn’t want Shiro’s pity. 

“Letting go of someone you loved can be hard, there’s no timeline—”

“That’s not it,” Lance interrupted, burning with the need for Shiro to know he wasn’t pathetically crying for his girlfriend of a couple weeks over a year later.

“I loved Allura—I still do and I always will. But—” he exhaled heavily. “I mourn her friendship.”

He looked up from where he’d been staring at the coffee table to find Shiro watching him seriously.

“I’m not hung up on Allura romantically. I’ve just…got other things on me mind.”

“I’m sorry for bringing it up,” Shiro began. “I…worry about you.”

“Why?” Lance had to ask, he needed to know what it was about him that had everyone in his life so concerned. 

“Do I seem so fragile that you need to worry?”

Shiro was taken aback. “Lance, no—”

“Then what? What is it?” His voice was gaining volume, echoing in the mostly empty room. “Why did you walk me back to my room back on Altea, why are you so concerned—”

“Because I care about you!”

It was practically shouted, which was good, because Lance was so caught up in being upset that he’d started to rise up on his knees and was perilously close to revealing his enormous secret.

He sat back down at Shiro’s words. 

“Oh.”

Shiro looked flustered, his cheeks slightly warm as he looked everywhere but at Lance.

“You care about everyone?” Lance needed to be sure.

On screen, Shiro visibly relaxed and finally turned heartfelt eyes his way. “Of course I do Lance, but it’s not like I’ve slept with any of _them._ Or want to.”

Lance felt his pulse speed up, his face growing hot.

“Oh…I—I didn’t think we were gonna talk about that…” 

Shiro sighed, leaning his head back against the wall of his room. He’d been sitting on his bed for the past hour, looking so young as relaxed as he talked to Lance.

“We should have. I’m sorry that we didn’t right away.”

“Yeah well…” Lance felt a bit of sweat trickle down from his hairline. “We both had a lot to drink and accidents happen—”

“It wasn’t an accident, Lance.” Shiro interjected quickly. “Well, it _was._ I never meant to—You were so upset and it hadn’t been that long since—I wanted to give you time but—”

He knew his eyes were wide as Shiro babbled what _sounded_ like… “What are you trying to say, Shiro?”

Shiro huffed, pinching the bridge of his nose, right over the raised pink scar.

“I’m interested in you,” he finally looked up and his gaze was piercing. “Romantically. I wasn’t going to pursue it—I didn’t even think you’d be _into it—”_

Lance wanted to interrupt and say _come on dude, who isn’t_ but right then was definitely not the time. 

“That night it became clear that maybe you _were_ and I acted impulsively. And then I acted…childishly, by not mentioning it the next day—and I’m so sorry for that.”

He sighed again, and Lance watched the screen helplessly. 

“I understand if you’re upset and if you want me to fuck off, I will, but being up here has just been a constant reminder of our time with Voltron and I just _miss_ you and—”

“I miss you too.” 

Shiro stopped, looking surprised. “You do?”

Smiling softly, Lance shrugged. “Why else would I have messaged you last week?”

“Honestly, I figured Keith told you I’d been dying for you to.” 

Lance melted for a second. Shiro had been waiting for him to reach out – had mentioned it to _Keith._

“Keith never said anything, the traitor,” Lance joked. Deep down he was just relieved that despite Shiro bringing him up, Keith had never mentioned Lance’s situation.

_His situation._

As if connected to his brain – which kind of, they were – the baby pushed out against his stomach, pressing down directly into his bladder.

“Oof,” Lance grunting, grasping at this stomach.

“Everything okay?” Shiro look concerned, as if they hadn’t been in the middle of a dramatically revealing conversation.

“Yeah, just uh—stomach cramps.”

“You’re not still sick, are you?” 

Lance waved him off, trying to ignore his now aching bladder. This conversation was _too_ important.

“I’m fine, it’s fine. So you _like_ me?”

Shiro finally smiled. “I really do.”

“Oh. Well that—Cool, that’s cool.”

Now Shiro was grinning. “I’m glad you think it’s cool.”

Lance nodded distractedly. Shiro liked him. Shiro. Liked him. 

Shiro _liked_ him. 

Lance felt a little faint. 

“Do you…like me?”

He had never heard Shiro sound so unsure. The man was the most decisive person he knew. And yet in the face of Lance’s feelings he was…nervous. 

Which brooked the question. 

Did he like Shiro?

Despite everything that had happened, Lance had never really taken the time to ask himself that. 

It’d seemed so outlandish. Too implausible. And Lance had already been pursuing someone so clearly out of his league, a serious longshot – two of them would have been a nightmare on his self-esteem.

But apparently, he’d been wrong. It wasn’t that unlikely.

It the end, both of them had liked him back.

And _that_ was doing wonders for his self-esteem. 

Shiro cleared his throat and Lance realized how long he’d taken to answer.

“I mean, I don’t expect—”

“No, wait.” 

Shiro’s mouth closed with the click of his teeth and he looked at Lance patiently.

“I actually don’t know.”

“Oh,” he deflated. 

“I mean, I do! I like you a lot Shiro, hell I _love_ you, you’re one of my closest friends.”

Shiro looked more hopeful at that, which made Lance feel even worse for what he was about to say.

“But that’s what scares me. I don’t ever want to lose you—I don’t know if I’m actually ready to give myself fully to someone and that’s what you deserve—someone fully invested in you.”

Lance sighed, running a hand through his hair. “And I kind of have some…family stuff going on that I need to focus on.”

There was silence for a moment before Shiro spoke.

“You’ve grown up a lot.”

That was not what Lance was expecting.

“I love you too and would never want to do anything to hurt you—or lose you.”

A beat.

“But—”

Lance waited patiently and when Shiro spoke again, it was with the same passion and determination he’d had at every speech Lance had ever seen him give.

“—I don’t anticipate my feelings for you going away anytime soon and I’m willing to wait.”

All of the air in Lance’s lungs left in a single breath. Finally, he nodded. Shiro wanted to pursue him. And Lance couldn’t help feeling…

“Good.” 

“I’ll talk to you tomorrow, Lance,” Shiro promised with a smile.

“Goodnight, Shiro.”

The second the camera was off, Lance bolted for the bathroom.

+

The following weeks were filled with the sweetest torture Lance had ever known. 

Shiro was _wooing_ him.

Well, as much as someone could woo from six galaxies away.

Which turned out to be a lot. 

He woke up to good morning messages, he was continually receiving photos of stars and planets as well as random moments from Shiro’s life. The most memorable being a slightly blurry selfie in the mirror of the gym – Shiro in a grey shirt, with a V of sweat soaking through, his eyes turned down to look at the phone he was holding. 

After a few minutes hesitation, it had replaced the original picture of space as his background.

Best of all were the little remarks on his day. 

_Florescent lighting it the scourge of space._

_Nadia pantsed Griffin during training and I had to pretend like I wasn’t dying laughing._

_We stopped on a planet with blue sand. Same color as your eyes._

Comments like those had him blushing immediately. 

But it was half of what made it so, so awful. 

Lance was slowly buckling under the weight of guilt. 

Shiro was so clearly into him and Lance was _lying_ to him. Was pregnant with his baby he had absolutely no idea about!

It was enough to make him sick – frequently.

“I thought you were done with morning sickness?” Keith asked, patting his back awkwardly as he heaved over the toilet.

“That’s not morning sickness, it’s his conscious,” Pidge chimed in helpfully from where she was leaning on the doorframe. 

Lance coughed, straightening up with a glare.

“Thanks Pidge.”

“No problem.”

Together they moved back into the living room, Lance taking a seat on the couch with the help of multiple pillows. At thirty-six weeks the baby was sitting much lower, and all of the previous comfortable positions he’d found were no longer cutting it.

“Why don’t you just tell him?” Keith asked, for probably the hundredth time, as he handed Lance a take-out box of noodles.

“Because _what if he freaks out and stops loving me,”_ Pidge mimicked rudely.

“I never said he loves me!” Lance crowed, ignoring the other part.

Pidge snorted. “You act like we aren’t _also_ friends with Shiro. He talks to us too, dude—”

She was cut off by a harsh jab to her thigh from Keith’s foot.

Ignoring their silent conversation, Lance picked the baby corn out of his noodles to eat first. 

It was getting more and more obvious that Shiro really did care about him. 

And though they’d never implicitly spoken about a relationship – let alone _children_ – Lance could see it heading that way.

Knowing what he did now, and knowing Shiro in general, Lance knew realistically that if he told Shiro, it wouldn’t be the end of the world.

But there was still the chance that it _would_ be the end of their relationship – before it even began. 

Just because Shiro was into him didn’t mean he was ready or even wanted to be a parent and raise a child. 

Keeping the baby had been Lance’s decision. Inflicting that decision on an unsuspecting party seemed cruel.

He said as much to Pidge and Keith. 

“Don’t you think that keeping it from him is just as cruel?”

Lance shrugged self-consciously. “I’m not gonna keep it from him forever.”

“So when are you going to tell him? When you’re in labor? On the baby’s first birthday? High school graduation?” Keith’s voice was slightly icy – a harsh reminder than Keith was Shiro’s best friend. 

Lance glared at him. “You think I should tell him now? When he’s a hundred lightyears away?”

“Well, they’re not—” Pidge began but Keith was quick to cut her off.

“The longer you wait, the worse it will be. He deserves to know Lance, now you’re just playing with him!” His voice was ratcheting up, grating at Lance.

“I’m not playing with him, I’m fucking scared!” 

It was shouted, ringing through the air even after he’d finished speaking. His chest was heaving at he looked at his friends, both of whom were watching him with obvious surprise. 

Lance collapsed against the couch.

“I already lost Allura, I can’t lose Shiro too.”

“Lance…you really need to tell him.”

He nodded at Keith’s words, knowing they were true but still not knowing how. 

After they left, Lance sat in his bed, pulling out his phone. Clicking on his mother’s number, he waited patiently for her to answer.

“Baby, are you okay?” 

Lance relaxed at the sound of his mom’s voice.

“I’m okay, mama. I just needed to tell you something.”

“Don’t tell me it’s twins now, Lance, I can only take so much excitement,” she laughed, and he joined her briefly before his voice turned somber. 

“It’s Shiro—the baby’s father is Shiro.”

He could almost hear her surprise. 

“Oh, well... Shiro is a good man, I’m sure he’ll make an excellent father.”

Lance tried to continue, but his voice hitched and when he finally spoke, his voice was trembling with tears.

“I can’t tell him mama, I can’t do it.”

“Lance, baby!” She sounded alarmed. “Has he done something—”

“No!” Lance interjected quickly, the matter of his crying obvious. “No, he hasn’t—I just—Shiro has so much potential, he could change the entire universe! I can’t saddle him with a baby—with me.”

He wiped at his face, but the tears wouldn’t stop. 

“I’m coming over,” his mother informed him seriously. 

“No, mama, please—it’s fine. I’m fine.”

“Clearly you’re not if you would say these things about yourself Lance! You’re not saddling him with anything, he doesn’t deserve _you—“_

“Mom, you’re being ridiculous—”

“No Baby, you’re being ridiculous. Does this man love you?”

“I—My friends think he does.”

“And what do you think?”

Lance considered everything. Their years of friendship. The way Shiro would sometimes smile softly at him and call him _Sharpshooter._

How he’d been so available for Lance after Allura’s death. The way he’d commiserated with him the night of the award ceremony. How he’d pulled Lance into his lap, pressing his face into his throat as he’d moaned Lance’s name, how he’d laced their fingers right before he’d come. 

And all of the photos and messages – the gestures that so clearly said _you’re on my mind, I hope I’m on yours._

“I think he does.”

“Of course he does Baby, you are so worthy of love.”

Lance sniffed, trying to hold back further tears. 

“Do you love him?”

Without overthinking it, Lance replied. “I think I do.”

“Then there you have it, Lance. Maybe the baby will be a surprise for him, babies usually are. But if he loves you, then he will absolutely love the child you give birth to.”

Lance went to sleep with that in mind.

+

Doctor Blake told him that though his due date was a couple weeks off, the baby could be coming any day. 

Lance was hoping for sooner rather than later. 

It had been four days since his talk with his mother, and while he hadn’t told Shiro yet, he was finally planning to. 

They were talking almost constantly, a steady stream of consciousness from one to another. Shiro’s full of exciting missions, anecdotes from his crew and lots of pictures. Lance’s mostly about whatever book or show he was currently engaged in, sprinkled with commentary on Keith and Pidge’s goings-on.

Lance was standing in his kitchen eating Greek yogurt and granola when his tablet pinged.

**T. Shirogane:** _Do you miss me?_

Lance grinned. He’d been very amused to learn how much Shiro thrived on words of affection. It was adorable.

**Me:** _immensely_

**T. Shirogane:** _Perfect, open your door._

Lance felt his blood run cold.

**Me:** _why?_

**T. Shirogane:** _LOL don’t make me ruin the surprise._

Now Lance was looking at his front door as if waiting for it to attack him.

Surely Shiro didn’t mean… There was _no_ way he was back on Earth.

And then his phone was vibrating. Not his garrison issues communications tablet – his actual, personal cell phone. 

Lance pulled it from where it was tucked in the back of his yoga pants to look at the front. 

Shiro’s name glowed across the screen. Staring at it like he’d never seen it before, he slowly pulled it to his ear, clicking the green answer icon.

“Hello?” 

“Are you going to make me stand out here forever?” His voice was warm, like he was on the edge of a laugh. 

“Um—” Lance was frozen. Every single scenario he’d built in his head for telling Shiro was out the window now. There was literally no other option. 

“Shiro, I—” 

He caught the hesitance in Lance’s voice. 

“Is everything okay? Are you not home right now?”

“No, I—I’m home, it’s just—”

“Lance, please open the door, you’re really worrying me.” He sounded it, too.

Lance snapped. 

“Shiro, there’s something I haven’t told you, and I’m so sorry, I just didn’t know how and I—I wish I had said something—”

“Lance, calm down, what are you talking about?”

“The night that we—On New Altea, when we—” 

_”Lance,”_ Shiro practically barked. “Open the door!”

It was spoken not as Shiro to Lance, but as an alpha to an omega, and without thought, Lance moved to the door to open it.

Shiro was standing on the other side, tall and broad, his hair swept back from him face. He was slightly breathless, face writ with concern. 

Lance could see the slow light of realization dawn in his eyes. 

He’d never felt so much like dropping to his knees in submission before. Gripping the door to keep himself from giving into his heightened omega instincts, Lance tried to appear calm.

“I didn’t know how to tell you.”

Shiro tore his gaze away from Lance’s belly to look him in the eye. He looked slightly crazed.

“It’s mine?” 

Lance nodded and Shiro looked back down to the hugely pregnant stomach between them.

“I’m gonna be a dad?” His voice was odd, and Lance couldn’t pick up on his feelings from the tone.

“If you want to be.”

His words seemed to snap Shiro out of his trance and before Lance could understand what was happening, Shiro had wrapped him in an awkward yet fierce embrace. 

Lance grunted in surprise.

“Why didn’t you tell me?” It was spoken directly into the top of his head, breath blowing his hair up.

“I was worried—” A soft cough from out in the hallway drew his attention, and Lance remembered where they were. “Uh, Shiro can we go inside?”

“Right, yeah, sorry.” 

Having Shiro inside of his rooms made everything feel smaller for some reason. Which was odd since he had Keith and Pidge over pretty regularly these days and had never felt that way.

But seeing Shiro sitting on his couch, almost vibrating with the need to ask questions, Lance couldn’t help but notice how comically large he appeared compared to everything else.

“Tea?” Lance asked, more out of the need to have a few moments to himself in the kitchen than any real desire to be a good host.

“I can get it,” Shiro started to stand but Lance held up his hand.

“No, it’s fine, I can be quick. Cream and sugar?”

“Yes, please.”

As Lance stood at the counter, waiting for the kettle to warm, he pulled cups and spoons out of the cabinet. Anyone watching would have thought he was perfectly calm, except for the slight trembling of his hands as he worked. 

He didn’t even notice, could barely hear the rattling of the mug in his hand as he set it on the tray over the sound of the ringing in his ears. 

It must have been loud because with zero warning, Shiro was at his side, taking the cup out of his hand and reaching to turn the kettle off.

“Lance,” Shiro started before Lance burst into tears.

“I’m sorry, fuck, I’m so—” He pulled his hand away from Shiro, wiping at his face. “It’s not—I cry at everything now, I’m so fucking hormonal.”

“I can’t believe you’ve been going through all of this by yourself, I could have come back—”

“Stop! That’s exactly why I didn’t tell you.”

Lance was surprised to see a flash of hurt cross Shiro’s face and knew he had to clarify.

“It’s not that I didn’t want you to be around, Shiro. I just…don’t want you to throw everything away for this.”

“What? Why would you—”

“You have your entire future in front of you Shiro! You’re gonna do important things, make a difference. I can’t hold you back, how is this any different from your ex?”

Shiro’s mouth dropped open for a second before closing with a snap, eyes flashing. 

“It’s completely different, Lance.” 

Shiro looked down to the tray, seeing the half-poured cups and the still unopened tea bags. 

“Go sit down, I’ll bring this out.”

Lance did so without argument, grabbing a seat on his couch and pulling a blanket over his legs in an attempt to comfort himself.

He didn’t understand how any of this was different from Shiro’s boyfriend asking him to give up his dreams to be with him. Maybe Shiro didn’t understand everything that being a part of all this entailed. Lance wasn’t going to let his baby have a father who came and went, with zero stability. He’d rather raise them alone.

“You look upset,” Shiro commented, setting the tray down and handing Lance a cup before sitting at the other end of the couch, facing him.

Lance took a sip without looking and was pleasantly surprised that it tasted exactly as if he’d made it. 

“Don’t look so surprised, I watched you make the same cup of tea every day for two years.”

Lance hummed, before turning to Shiro. 

“If I had told you I was pregnant, what would you have done?”

“I would have come back to Earth.”

“Ruining the mission!” 

“Lance, you’re severely overestimating my importance right now. They could have run without me. And I wouldn’t have stayed the whole time if you didn’t want me to. It’s fairly easy to travel back to Earth when necessary—Keith does it all the time!”

Understanding dawned on Shiro’s face. 

“He was coming here because you’re pregnant. He knew this whole time.”

Lance nodded apologetically. “I asked him not to tell.”

“And this is why you haven’t spoken to Veronica either?”

“She mentioned that?” He asked in surprise. 

“Extensively. To me, primarily.”

“Oh…” Lance trailed off for a moment. “Does she know that you…”

“Are in love with you? Yeah, we’ve talked about it.”

Lance felt his eyes widen as his heart started pounding. 

“O-oh, I wasn’t—You never said—” 

“Well, I was trying to take it slow but now I found out that you’re having my baby so—”

“R-right. Uh—sorry, for not telling you.”

Shiro sighed, downing his cup of tea in one go – reminding Lance of his own, which he was still holding up like he was planning to drink it any second. 

Taking a sip to distract himself, Lance almost didn’t hear Shiro.

“You weren’t in heat?” He was surprised to see a flush of color high on Shiro’s cheekbones at the question.

“No, I—It was a spontaneous pregnancy, it’s happens sometimes—”

“I know,” Shiro interrupted, reaching up to rub at the back of his neck nervously. “My mom had the same thing happen with me.”

Now it was Lance’s turn to be surprised. “Really? My doctor said it’s super rare.”

Shiro shrugged. “My mom used to say it’s because she and my dad are soulmates, which is true, honestly. Now I’m kind of thinking maybe it’s genetic.”

He rolled his eyes, before looking at Lance repentantly. “Sorry, for that.”

Lance blushed. “I wouldn’t have believed it, honestly, if it hadn’t been literal years since my last heat. Plus, you’re the only one I’ve ever…you know.”

Shiro head snapped up. “Wait, seriously?”

Sighing, Lance felt his blush spread even farther. “Uh, yeah, pretty much.”

“I assumed you and Allura—Lance, I’m sorry, you were drunk and it should have been _special.”_

Lance waved him off. “Allura and I never really got the chance to go _all the way,_ with the whole fighting an empire thing. And honestly, I don’t put a lot of store into virginity, it’s all made up anyway.”

“Still, I wish I had known, I would have—”

“Seriously, Shiro,” would Lance’s cheeks ever stop burning? “Don’t make me go on about how great it was, I can only take so much.”

Shiro smiled at him and let the subject drop. They sat in silence for a moment before Lance finally asked. 

“So what now?” 

“It’s up to you, Lance. You know how I feel and I would love nothing more than to be with you and our baby. But I don’t want to force you into anything.”

Lance was picking at his cuticle, knowing that if he turned his head and actually looked at Shiro, he’d lose whatever train of thought he had.

“You really want to be a dad? With me? We’ve never even been on a date—what if you can’t stand living with me? What if you fall out of love? I can’t take risks now—it’s not just my feelings at stake now.”

“Five years ago, I might have promised that I would make sure nothing bad ever happens, to you or the baby. But being captured by Galra has kind of changed my perspective on what we have control over in our lives. I can’t promise everything will be perfect, Lance. But I can promise to always do everything in my power to make it as close to perfect as possible.”

Finally, Lance looked up, his gaze immediately caught by Shiro’s piercing dark eyes. 

“Being with you and having a baby doesn’t preclude us from having our own lives and careers. I’ll spend less time out on missions, but that’s okay. Babies grow up, they fit into their parents lives. Maybe one day we can take the baby with us to space.”

He was smiling, and Lance felt a burst of warmth in his chest. 

“We?”

Shiro shrugged somewhat bashfully. “I know you said you wanted to teach but maybe one day, if you liked. I’d love to spend some time out in space with you that _isn’t_ fraught with peril.”

Lance laughed, both at the truth in his words and also the idea of it – the three of them in space. He, Shiro and their baby.

He nodded, caught up in the romance of it all. 

“That would be nice.”

“Admiral Cherish has been begging me to take up teaching again, and I was tempted even before finding out about the baby. Not that, you know, I’m trying to rush you into anything. We can take it slow,” Shiro offered, once again. 

“I think it’s a little late for that,” Lance rolled his eyes. 

“Thank god,” Shiro breathed, moving down the couch to lean across Lance. “I don’t know how slow I could manage, to be honest. I want to kiss you so bad.”

Lance’s eyebrows wrinkled in confusion. “Right now? But I look so—”

“Gorgeous?”

“Fat.”

Shiro huffed, sitting pressed up against Lance, pulling at his thighs to coax Lance closer. 

“You’re beautiful Lance, I’ve always thought so. And the fact that you’re now pregnant with my baby is doing outrageous things to the baser alpha instincts I usually have no problem ignoring.”

“Really?” Lance’s voice was breathy, something he would have been embarrassed by any other time, but the way Shiro was staring at him – like he wanted to devour him – was getting to him.

“I don’t know if you realize but the way you smell is driving me wild and I’ve been fighting the urge to touch you since we sat down.”

Lance looked down to where the hand of Shiro’s gleaming white prosthetic was cupping his thigh, his other snug against the curve of his hip.

“Seems like a losing battle,” Lance whispered. 

Shiro grinned. “I’ve been in space for eight months, I think I’m doing pretty well with this whole will-power thing.”

Letting go of his own, it was a tenuous thing, Lance reached up to touch Shiro’s face. Pulling at him until their mouths were meeting, slotting together so smoothly it felt as if they’d been doing this for years. 

Shiro’s grip tightened as he pulled Lance even closer – as much as his stomach would allow – and sighed into his mouth. 

Taking the opportunity, Lance slid his tongue into Shiro’s mouth, skating across the backs of his teeth before pulling away to gently bite at his bottom lip. 

Shiro growled into the kiss and Lance felt a rush of wetness in his underwear, the folds of his cunt engorging with blood, the level of sensitivity absurd.

Lance moaned softly, and there was an answering sound from Shiro, who tore his mouth away to press his forehead into Lance’s throat, already panting.

“I can smell you.”

Reaching up, Lance held a hand to his own flushed face. 

“It’s the pregnancy.”

“I’m sorry I’ve missed so much of it,” Shiro said into this throat before leaning back. “When are you due?”

Trying to get his breathing under control, Lance squirmed, feeling the slick running through his folds, his small cock hard and straining at his panties. 

“Uh, like a week—or any day. Pregnancy is weird.” 

Shiro laughed, kissing him chastely on the mouth.

“Do you know what it is?”

Lance shook his head. “No, I never found out. But my mom swears by six different old wife’s tales that it’s an omega.”

“That would be cute,” Shiro smiled. “A little you.”

Blushing for the six hundredth time today, Lance shoved at him lightly. 

“How are you back right now?”

“The mission is over Lance, we weren’t planning to be gone for that long.”

“Seriously?” Lance tried to think about all the planning leading up to the Atlas’ launch. Unfortunately, around that time he’d been wading through his third month as a teaching assistant and throwing up in every trashcan on campus. 

“Yeah I thought you knew—although I did want to surprise you by coming back a little bit early.”

“Yeah well, surprise is on you.”

They both grinned at each other before dissolving into laughter. 

“Oh!” Lance gasped, rubbing at the underside of his belly. “This kid better be a gymnast or champion boxer or something, I swear.”

Shiro looked at his stomach in curiosity. 

“They move a lot?”

Nodding, Lance groaned at the knowledge that he had a solid forty-five seconds to get to the bathroom before he pissed his pants.

After only a few moments of struggling, Shiro jumped up to help, guiding him to the bathroom. He stood outside the entire time, which Lance tried to ignore as he peed. 

Hands washed, he opened the bathroom door. 

“Dinner?”

“Dinner.”

+

Lance couldn’t lie. 

Being on bed rest hadn’t been as difficult as it should have been, primarily because not leaving the apartment meant not dealing with the stares and whispered comments from the entire command. 

Where before it had been looks of curiosity and occasionally even awe, getting pregnant had turned the tide to one of judgement and recrimination. The brief moment when he’d thought getting pregnant meant people wouldn’t judge him so harshly had long past.

Lance McClain, former paladin and savior of the world, one-time garrison darling, had turned out to be nothing very special – and he couldn’t even keep his legs closed either. 

He’d pretended like he didn’t hear the whispers, but no one was ever trying to be very quiet. The few times he’d ventured out with Keith or Pidge, no one had dared to say anything – but Lance could still see it in their eyes.

Walking through the garrison nine months pregnant was the stuff of his actual stress induced nightmares.

Now though…

With Shiro not only at his side but touching him – a hand at the small of his back or laced with his own – it was a different story entirely. 

People that he _knew_ had been gossiping about him, watched star struck as Shiro and Lance walked towards the café. 

Lance couldn’t help looking at them, eyes narrowed. A petty part of him wanted to gloat – _that’s right, there’s a dad in the picture and it’s Takashi Shirogane, bet you wished you’d kept your shitty opinions to yourself now!_

But the other part felt exactly as confused as they did. What was Shiro doing with him?

“You’re tense, and you smell alarmed,” Shiro spoke, as if commenting on the weather. 

Lance turned to him in surprise. “Sorry, I just—I haven’t left my rooms much. Medical leave.”

Shiro stopped briefly to cup his head and press a kiss to his temple. “Spontaneous pregnancy is hard. My mother said it’s the reason she never had another baby.”

Lance shrugged. “I lucked out, really. It could have been a lot worse.”

He looked over towards the people watching to see them quickly look away. 

“Are you close to your parents?” Lance asked, changing the subject. 

“Not as close as you and your family are,” Shiro admitted. “But I love them a lot. I wish I got to see them more.”

Lance hummed. “They live far away?”

“Back in Japan, they run a bed and breakfast with my grandparents.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, maybe we can go see them once the baby is born.”

Lance stopped walking, barely budging when Shiro yanked at where their hands were twined from the sudden stop.

“Or not—They don’t have to know yet, I can—”

“You want me to meet your family?”

Shiro’s turned to face him, heedless of the people milling around. 

“Lance… You’re my family. And if you’re okay with meeting my parents and stuff, that would be really cool. But if you’re not—”

“No, I—I am. I just didn’t think…”

“We’re going to have a baby Lance. We’re in this together.”

Lance laid his hands over his face, digging his fingers into his eyes to stop the idiotic tears I knew were coming.

“Right, that’ll just…take some getting used to.”

“Take your time, baby.”

The fingers on Lance’s hands spread, so that Lance could look at him without uncovering his burning cheeks.

“That’s cheating.” 

Shiro held a hand against his chest in mock offense, before taking Lance’s hand once more and heading once more towards the café. 

Sitting with Shiro, a tray of everything on the menu which had piqued any bit of Lance’s interest – which was a lot – between them, it was easy to ignore the looks and whispers.

There was one voice that he could not ignore. 

_”Lance Alexander McClain!”_

Lance and Shiro looked at each other in alarm and spoke in unison. 

“Oh, shit.”

His head swiveled towards the source. 

Veronica was practically vaulting the other patio tables, pushing against the shoulder of the poor soul who dared to step in her way, before pulling up at their table – chest heaving.

“How _the hell_ did you keep this a secret from me?” She asked accusingly before turning sharp eyes to Shiro.

“And you! You don’t bother to tell me you knocked my little brother up when—”

She was cut off by Lance grabbed her arm, yanking her to sit down at the table.

“Christ woman, can you yell any louder? There’re some people in the north air hanger who didn’t hear you!”

Veronica huffed, crossing her arms over her chest. “Well excuse me for being upset that I had to find out from Luis!”

She shoved at his shoulder. 

“Luis, Lance! The man who literally notices nothing!”

“Veronica,” Shiro reached for her, stopping her admittedly mild assault. “He’s on bed rest!”

“He’ll be on bed rest for life when I’m done with him!” She shouted once more but ceased her pushing. 

Lance straightened his clothes, throwing a glare his sister’s way before relaxing. 

“Look, I’m sorry I didn’t tell you, but now you know. So.”

“That’s it?” She threw her hands up. “You’re ten seconds from popping out a baby, with my captain who _by the way_ has been moaning over you all year to me.”

“I’m sitting right here,” Shiro threw in, though neither sibling was listening to him. 

“And all you have to say is sorry? I don’t want sorry Lance, I want to know what the hell is going on!”

Lance huffed, scanning around to see who was watching and shooting them a glare until they minded their own business. 

“I got pregnant on New Altea, Shiro found out literally _today,_ and I asked mom not to tell you so that it wouldn’t get back to him. Happy?”

From the look on her face, Veronica was definitely not happy. 

“You didn’t tell him? What the fuck Lance! This man was _crying_ over you—”

“Still, right here.”

“—and you’ve just been keeping this huge life altering secret from him, what’s wrong with you?”

“Look, I’ve already gotten this lecture from practically everyone and it’s not like it matters because obviously the point is moot.”

He held a hand out towards Shiro, who merely took a bite of his sandwich and shrugged. 

Veronica scoffed, reaching out to take his french-fries. “If that baby is a girl, you better name it after me.”

+

“So I guess I’ll just…go,” Shiro stood in his doorway awkwardly, one hand braced against Lance’s stomach. 

The baby kicked at it, and Shiro grinned for a second before sighing. 

It was for the best. Today had been _insane._

He’d woken up alone in bed, ready to face another boring day of sitting around waiting for his baby, and now he was going to bed feeling like a completely different person.

He should probably take the time to process everything. 

But the thing was…

He’d never felt so comfortable during this entire pregnancy as he had that day. Even the baby’s constant pushing had hardly bothered him. He hadn’t experienced heartburn, his ankles were only slightly swollen, the near constant false contractions felt like nothing.

And while the romantic side of Lance wanted to attribute it to the knowledge that Shiro was here, that he still loved him and wanted to raise their baby together, the more pragmatic side of him knew that it was most likely Shiro’s virile alpha scent – the scent of the father of his child – soothing him. 

So while he knew sending Shiro back to his rooms – rooms he had yet to step foot in since landing – was the best decision, his instinctive, possessive omega brain was loathe to let that happen.

“Or you could stay,” he offered casually, biting the inside of his cheek.

“Or I could stay,” Shiro agreed, crowding into Lance’s space until he had no choice but to step back and let Shiro in.

“Are you always this clingy, or is it the pregnancy pheromones?” Lance asked before he could stop to filter.

He froze, realizing immediately how fucking rude that sounded but Shiro was laughing, his shoulders shaking lightly. 

“Should I dial it back?”

“No, no!” Lance was quick to assure him. “I’m just uh—wondering what to expect in the future.”

Shiro snorted, before bending at the knee to grab the backs of Lance’s thighs and lifting. 

Lance yelped, wrapping his arms around Shiro’s shoulder’s as much as he was able to with his belly squished between them.

“Shiro, _how—“_ He felt stable, and the amount of pressure on his stomach was minimal. Still, it was disconcerting to be held so high when his center of gravity was so unusually low lately. 

“You’re fairly petite at the best of times, Lance.” He said, walking them both easily towards the bedroom. 

“Did you just call me _petite—”_

“But to answer your question,” Shiro interrupted. “I have been accused of being clingy before.”

Lance grumbled, aiming for annoyed but just coming off fond. He allowed himself to be carried and placed on the bed as if he weighed nothing more than a doll, only surprised at the soft gasp from Shiro.

He was looking at the crib, shiny and new, full of stuffed animals and little folded blankets. Next to it sat a changing table, already crammed full of all the things the baby would need, at least for the first few weeks. 

Shiro moved closer, picking up a onesie and holding it up.

“It’s so small.”

Lance laughed gently. “You sound like Keith, he kept saying _babies can’t possibly be this small_ under his breath.”

Shiro grunted. “Keith has seen all this?”

His voice was soft, and Lance had to strain to hear it, but he could still pick up the tone of hurt.

Ungracefully heaving himself up, Lance moved to stand beside Shiro at the crib.

“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you… It was really selfish of me.”

Shiro shook him off, refolding the onesie to pick up a tiny pacifier. 

“I understand where you were coming from, honestly. Omega’s get really defensive when they’re pregnant. This is just a part of that.”

“I don’t see you as a threat, Shiro,” Lance began but quickly stopped as Shiro took his hand. 

“Of sorts.” 

Lance took the pacifier out of Shiro’s hand and tossed it into the crib, pulling him to sit on the bed. 

“I’m really glad you decided to surprise me today.”

Shiro looked at him skeptically. 

“I am, seriously. I’ve been trying to find a way to tell you for a while and honestly it was starting to look like you wouldn’t find out ‘til I sent you a birthday invite.”

He grinned wryly and Shiro huffed a laugh.

“I was panicking, and you’ve always been good at talking me back from the edge.”

“I love you.”

Lance felt his breath stutter. 

“I know. I feel…the same.”

Shiro smiled, despite the less than enthusiastic return. 

“I think I’m honored to be the first person you didn’t desperately flirt with.” 

Lance rolled his eyes, shoving at the broad expanse of Shiro’s chest. 

“Don’t start, Shirogane.”

He laughed, his eyes warm as he watched Lance. 

“You look tired,” he observed. 

Lance collapsed back against his pile of pillows. 

“I am tired—I missed all three of my naps today.”

Shiro tsked sympathetically, and then he was rearranging them both into more comfortable positions in the bed, pulling off his own tee-shirt and jeans before sliding under the covers next to Lance. 

“Comfortable?” He asked at Lance’s back, taking most of his weight, with an arm wrapped right above his stomach. 

“No, but I never am these days,” he held tight to Shiro’s hand, stopping him from moving. “But this is nice. Fair warning, I get up at least six times a night to pee.”

“Consider me warned,” Shiro said into the back of his neck.

They settled together comfortably. Lance luxuriating in the feeling of Shiro’s warmth against his back, his scent practically blanketing them both. 

Shiro leaned slightly lower, his nose sliding up along Lance’s neck, pausing directly over his omega gland. He could feel hot breath against his skin and Lance shivered at the sensation.

“You’ve always had an appealing scent, even when it was overlaid by suppressants…” He buried his face, breathing in deeply. “When we got back to Earth and you went off of them, it was beyond captivating. I kept think to myself that whenever your heat came around I would have to take a mission far, far away.”

Lance giggled softly. “Jokes on you.”

“Right now, though. It’s almost completely different and yet I feel even more susceptible to its pull.” 

He shook his head minutely. 

“I don’t know how you haven’t had people banging down your door.”

“Uh, Shiro, I’m pretty sure to everyone else I smell like a pregnant omega, which from what I understand is a fairly big turn off to anyone that didn’t get them knocked up.”

Shiro laughed, squeezing Lance tightly. “Maybe. Doesn’t make it less true.”

He fell asleep to the sound of Shiro’s soft breathing as he continued to scent him. 

And every time he woke up to pee, Shiro was there to help him to the bathroom.

+

The next morning, Shiro told him that he needed to return to his ship for a post-mission inspection. He said it between kisses that were laid against his forehead and cheeks, even on the tip of his nose. 

“I’ll make it as quick as possible, and then maybe we can get breakfast after?”

Lance hummed in a note of agreement, eyes closed as he basked in the soft affection. 

Just as Shiro was about to leave, Lance remembered something.

“Oh, wait,” he called, flipping open the notebook he used for lesson planning and pulling out a photo. “I thought you might like this.”

It was the most recent sonogram, an almost perfect black and white image of the baby inside him.

Shiro accepted it like it was a bomb.

“This is…”

“From about twenty-two weeks. They’re a lot bigger now, but the doctor said any later photos and I’d for sure see the sex.”

Shiro stared down at it reverently, before tucking it into the breast pocket of his uniform.

“Lance, do you mind if I…”

“You can tell people, if you want.” He’d thought about it a lot that morning, knowing Shiro would eventually have to face his crew. “If Veronica hasn’t already told everyone.”

“She better not have.” 

Lance grinned, kissing him one last time before he left. 

Grabbing his coms tab, he pulled up the group message between Pidge, Keith and himself. 

**Me:** _he knows. he’s excited. he wants to raise the baby with me_

He’d barely sent the message before replies were coming through.

**Pidge:** _No shit, Sherlock!_

**Keith:** _FINALLY._

Rolling his eyes at their responses, Lance returned to his room, grabbing a change of clothes and heading into the bathroom.

He could smell Shiro on his sweater as he pulled it over his head and took the opportunity to hold it to his face and inhale. 

_Fuck._ Just his scent was enough to have Lance moaning, his body perking up in interest.

Stepping carefully into the shower, Lance ran through his routine, all the while his thoughts filled with Shiro.

Shiro wanted him. Wanted to make a life together, raise a child, introduce him to his parents!

He also still found Lance attractive, was constantly kissing and touching him, almost like he couldn’t stop himself. 

There had been a few times the night before that Lance had woken up to the feel of Shiro’s hard cock pressed into his backside. 

Only his overwhelming need to pee had kept him from grinding his ass back into Shiro’s crotch, baring his throat for Shiro’s teeth.

Just thinking about it had Lance’s cock thickening, his pussy swelling slowly, slick pooling at his core. 

Reaching down to touch himself effectively was out of the question, he’d lost that ability weeks ago. Straddling a pillow on his bed had been an acceptable substitute though, and the thought of doing so now – with Shiro’s scent still dousing the sheets – there was no question.

Rinsing himself quickly and toweling off as much as possible, Lance practically stumbled into the bedroom, throwing himself onto the bed clumsily. 

God, he felt frantic. The smell of Shiro saturating the room had Lance breathless and leaking. Moving to his knees, he shoved a pillow between his legs, sinking down until his aching cock was pressed into the soft fabric, his dripping folds soaking into the pillowcase. 

Grinding down, he could feel a fission of arousal trickle through his body. Snatching up the pillow Shiro had used the night before, he held it up for his face, inhaling deeply.

With his other hand he plucked sharply at his nipples – they were sore and already beginning to leak, but the edge of pain was enough to have him moaning. 

Fuck, with Shiro’s scent it was almost like the alpha was in the room with him, his hands running across Lance’s hips and thighs. Spreading him open, exposing his shining cunt and straining cock – Lance moaned at the thought. 

He rolled his hips, grinding harder and faster, he was so fucking close. His eyes rolled back, and he scratched ruthlessly at his nipples, panting into the pillow. 

It was so heady, Shiro’s scent all around him, almost stronger now as he reached climax.

Lance came with a muffled shout, slick gushing into the pillow, ruining it. His body shaking from the strain of holding himself up, he dropped the pillow, falling down to his hands as he panted for breath. 

It took a second for him to hear the low growling from the other side of his bedroom door. 

Sitting up in surprise, Lance paused to listen. “Shiro?”

_”Lance,”_ his voice was strained, on the edge of a heavy growl. 

Lance paused as his heartbeat slowed down to normal. He hadn’t locked the front door. Shiro must have finished up his inspection quicker than he’d expected. 

He’d probably rush to get back to Lance. 

The thought made him moan, just a little, and then shiver at the answering growl. 

Pulling the pillow from between his legs and tossing it to the floor – there was definitely no recovering it – Lance turned to rest on his ass, legs parted to display the mess between his legs. 

Almost completely overcome with potent omega drive, Lance whined low in his throat – a primal noise meant to entice a mate. 

Like magic, Shiro pushed open the door, his body silhouetted in the light from the living room. 

“Lance,” he was still growling, Lance had never heard something so instinctual from him.

“Shiro,” Lance moaned, laying further back as he spread his legs wider. 

Without another word, Shiro was pulling off his own shirt, throwing it down to the floor to be quickly joined by the rest of his clothes. 

He moved onto the bed, grabbing the backs of Lance’s knees to pull him down the bed and spread him open. 

In a moment of clarity, Shiro asked: “Are you sure?”

Lance couldn’t contain a laugh. “What, worried I’ll get knocked up?”

Shiro huffed, though his eyes were fixed to the juncture of Lance’s thighs. 

“I’m worried we’re rushing things,” he confessed – even as he reached out to run a finger from the top of Lance’s small, sensitive cock, all the way down to his swollen cunt. 

Lance moaned again, eyelids fluttering. 

“I got pregnant the first time we had sex, I don’t think there’s anything more rushed than that.”

Sinking a finger inside, Shiro snorted, still amused at Lance’s antics even now. He crooked upwards, pressing against the spongey walls with purpose. 

“Fuck, Shiro—” He was desperate. He’d been dreaming of this for months, waking up soaked and aching, and now it was happening. “Please fuck me, I need it so bad.” 

Shiro groaned, sliding a second finger inside.

“Is it safe?” His eyes flicked up to Lance’s stomach.

“It’s fine, it’s fine, fuck, please Shiro!” 

“What would be most comfortable for you?” 

Lance had to think, comprehension shot from arousal, before he could come up with something plausible. 

“On our sides, from behind,” he finally answered, trying to move into a sitting position. 

Shiro took his hand, helping him up, and giving Lance his first chance to see Shiro’s massive erection.

“Fuck,” he spoke directly to it, eyes wide. His knot was already starting to swell, which wasn’t supposed to happen outside of heat, but Lance had read enough pregnancy books by now to know his scent in this state could trigger it.

Shiro hadn’t knotted him before due to the lack of pheromones, one of the reasons it was so crazy the pregnancy had taken. 

Reaching out, Lance grasped him right at the base, squeezing at the swollen tissue. 

Shiro hissed, though instead of moving his hand to take Lance’s away, he wrapped his own around the smaller hand, squeezing even tighter. 

“Knot me,” Lance blurted, blushing immediately. 

“Are you sure that’s okay?” 

Lance nodded, he was sure. In fact, he’d read that knotting this late in a pregnancy could trigger labor, but he wasn’t about to tell Shiro that. 

Better to roll the dice and hope for the best, that was how he did things.

Once on his side, Shiro spooned up beside him, the tip of his cock nudging at his folds, slipping through the wetness. 

Lance reached behind himself, grasping Shiro by his hair. 

“Fuck me, dammit, I’m dying for it!” 

He probably would have continued taunting if Shiro hadn’t so sweetly obliged, sinking his cock inside in one smooth move. 

He cried out, his fingernails digging sharply into Shiro’s scalp. 

“Baby, so feel so perfect around me, so tight and hot.”

Shiro thrust his hips, running a hand down the side of his body to hook behind Lance’s knee, spreading him open. He mouthed at Lance’s neck, biting and sucking all along his throat before coming to rest right over his scent gland. 

“Do it,” Lance growled, rolling his hips back into Shiro, desperately begging for release. “Bite me.”

Shiro wasted no time, closing his teeth almost hard enough to break skin. The pressure on his overly sensitive gland was enough to have Lance shaking with orgasm. 

“Fuck, you smell so good, I want to bury my face in your pussy—suck your cute little cock until you’re crying.”

He was rutting into Lance in a hard, steady cadence, still holding him open and exposed. 

“I want to come all over you until you smell like me, rub it into your skin so that everyone knows you’re mine, only mine.”

With every snap of his hips, there was an answering gasp from Lance, a beat that was almost musical. And with every filthy word from Shiro’s lips, Lance was climbing towards another orgasm, could feel the fluttering of anticipation in his cunt.

As if sensing his impending release, Shiro slid his hands down, gliding his fingers over Lance’s neglected cock, rubbing at it until he was practically crying from oversensitivity. 

Just as Lance was cresting the peak, Shiro slammed his hips forward, slotting his knot into place – locking them together. 

Lance moaned, long and low, the rhythmic clenching of his pussy milking Shiro’s knot, drawing out shot after shot of cum. 

Shiro had buried his face in Lance’s neck, licking and sucking anywhere he could reach – marking him for everyone to see.

Lance whined, pulling at where they were tied, only for Shiro to growl again. He relaxed at the sound, leaning back into his alpha. 

“I should have told you months ago so that we could have done this earlier.”

Shiro snorted. “That’s one of the reasons, yeah.”

“I love you, Shiro, and I’m not just saying that because I’m flooded with knotting endorphins.”

This time Shiro laughed, and the motion set them both rocking, sending a shiver through Lance’s body – his pussy clenching, in turn further milking Shiro’s knot. 

“Fuck,” he gasped, clasping at Lance’s stomach in surprise. “Oh! The baby’s going wild.”

“Yeah, they do that.”

They lay quietly for a bit, Shiro pressing at various spots on his stomach, feeling the baby move. After a while, Shiro was finally able to pull free, warm semen trickling out after him. 

“Can you stand? Do you want to go rinse off again while I get the bed cleaned up?”

Lance nodded, sleepily, moving to the bathroom without even bothering to tell Shiro where the bedding lived. 

He heard Shiro moving around in the bathroom while he showered, though paid him no mind, but when he stepped out to find a pile of clothes on the toilet lid he was hard pressed not to sigh.

Keith was right – he had been an idiot for not telling Shiro sooner. 

Once dressed in a green maternity sweater and stretchy leggings, he wandered back into the room, finding Shiro finishing up the bed. It was so pristine Lance would not have been shocked to lift the duvet and find hospital corners. 

“I thought you might want some clothes, I tried not to go through your closet too much and those were right at the front so—”

“It was a good guess, thanks Shiro.”

He turned to look at Lance, who was only slightly surprised to see the tension in his eyes. 

“I don’t want you to just think I’m _moving in_ on your life,” Shiro combed at his own hair. “Obviously you have your own thing going on here, so—”

Lance folded his arms over his belly, an eyebrow slowly lifting as Shiro continued to ramble. 

“Shiro…relax.”

Though he seemed anything but relaxed, Shiro dropped the pillow he’d been neurotically fluffing and turned to face him.

“You know it wouldn’t be the end of the world if you moved in on my life,” he confessed. “I’ve been kind of…on my own—since we got back to the garrison and it’s just—”

“Awful?” Shiro offered.

“Yes!” Lance shouted, before practically whispering. _”It’s just_ after living with my family, then sharing a dorm—and we were all practically attached at the hip on the castle, it’s been so weird just…being alone.”

Walking closer, Shiro took his hands and held them in his own. 

“I know what you mean. It’s a big part of why I was so adamant about getting back into space after everything.”

“Maybe I should have gone too,” Lance huffed jokingly. 

“You could have Lance, you’re a great pilot.”

Lance rolled his eyes, but he smiled nonetheless. “You’re just saying that because you want to get in my pants—but I do appreciate the sentiment.”

“I don’t need to compliment your flying to get in your pants,” he looked down to Lance’s stomach pointedly. 

“Well _either way!_ I needed a break from it all. I actually like teaching…and maybe in a few years I’ll jump back in the cockpit.”

“If you want,” Shiro agreed. “Maria says you were doing great as a TA—the students really respect you.”

“Were in awe, more like. It wore off when they realized what a dork I am.”

“My favorite dork.”

“Alright, Shiro, we get it! You want to get in my pants!”

Lance squealed, almost falling as he tried to dodge the sneak tickling attack. Luckily Shiro had a good grip on his hands and slid an arm behind his back smoothly to support him. 

+

Two weeks later, Keith arrived, dropping his stuff next to the door.

“You _still_ haven’t given birth yet? What is going on with that kid?”

“Don’t worry, I have a list of recommendations to induce labor!” Pidge chimed, jumping onto the couch next to Lance who only mildly glared.

Shiro was sitting on the overstuffed chair, staring at his phone in concentration, looking up only long enough to exchange a bro grab with Keith.

“Does it involve spicy food?” Hunk shouted from the kitchen, where he was currently working on something he assured Lance _pregnant omegas love._

After his initial disappointment at being the last to know, he’d moved onto to baking everything he could possibly think of. Lance’s kitchen looked like a pastry shop.

“Yes! I have recipes here!”

“Yeah, that’s a big hell no from me. I can barely drink water without getting heartburn.”

“Did you or did you not just say you’d pay money to pop this baby out.”

“Yeah, money! Not my esophagus—that never recovers!” 

Pidge rolled her eyes, turning back to the list. 

“Okay well, you tried walking, you tried yoga—”

“If you call slightly bending over yoga, sure—”

“—you tried sex?”

Lance blushed slightly. “Uh, yeah, no go.”

“I’m talking lots of sex here Lance, really pound that baby out of you!”

“For the love of god, please stop talking,” Lance moaned as Keith reached over to cover Pidge’s mouth. 

He pulled it away quickly with a look of disgust on his face, her tongue still poking out at she yelled.

“I’m serious! It’s the most popular method!”

“And it clearly hasn’t worked, move on!”

Pidge snorted, turning back to her list. 

Keith leaned over to look at her list for a moment before turning his attention to Shiro, who was still engrossed in his phone.

“What are you doing?”

Shiro was silent until Keith nudged him to get his attention, looking up for only a second.

“Oh, uh—trying to decide if it’s okay to tell my parents I’m having a baby through text message.”

The second he stopped speaking the room burst into noise.

“Oh my god, _no!”_

_“What!”_

“Shiro, do you have a brain?”

Keith reached over to steal the phone from his hand, glancing at the message.

“This is in Japanese,” his expression fell, and he put up no fight when Shiro stole it back.

Huffing, Shiro held up the phone. “It says _Hey Mom and Dad, I’m back from my mission, everything went well. I’m going to try and make it out soon. I’m having a baby in a couple weeks, so I’ll probably bring them too. And my boyfriend. Tell Grandma and Grandpa hi.”_

He looked up at the room, his hopeful face quickly dropping to one of resignation.

“I’ll call them” he grumbled, standing up to walk into the other room.

“Nipple stimulation?” Pidge suggested.

“I hate you.”

“What about tea? I’ve heard certain teas can induce labor,” Hunk offered, carrying in a tray of flaky croissants, handing one to Lance directly. 

Lance moaned as he took a bite, his eyelids fluttering only slightly dramatically. 

In the other room he could just make out the sound of rapid fire Japanese, growing louder and more tense.

Concerned, Lance began to stand, one hand on the back of the couch and the other reaching in front of him for balance. 

Hunk grabbed at his hand helpfully, pulling him upright. The second he was balanced the cool air of his apartment made the wetness at the seat of his pants very obvious. 

Eyebrows wrinkled in confusion, Lance looked down to where he’d been sitting.

The fabric was noticeably darker in the impression of his ass, recognizably wet.

Lance tried to wrack his brain. Had he peed himself? Shifting from one foot to the other dislodged a small trickle of fluid, tracking down into his leggings. 

That was definitely not pee.

“Are you okay, Lance?” Hunk asked, still holding a hand out as if worried Lance was going to fall at any second. 

Just as he was about to share his suspicions, Shiro came back into the room. 

“Well, my parents are on their way, so—there’s that,” he rubbed at his face in exasperation before his expression turned serious. “Did something spill?”

He was looking at Lance’s lap and then the cushion, before turning back to Lance who was almost positive he was going into some sort of shock. 

At the lack of anything from Lance, Pidge stood up excitedly. 

“His water broke!”

After that, it was kind of a blur of motion that Lance could barely keep track of. Before he really understood what was happening, Lance was being helped into a hospital bed in the med bay. 

“You’re a while out from the actual birth, but we might as well get you comfortable while you wait,” Nurse _please call me Trevor_ Kim told him as he set up various medical equipment in the room. 

Lance couldn’t help noticing there were no flirty looks from him today, unlike with all of his other visits, Trevor’s eyes darting nervously towards Shiro more than once. 

Shiro was on the phone again, though he ended the call once they were alone. 

“Your mom and dad are en route,” he informed him.

“Along with yours?” Lance asked. He wasn’t completely sure after the excitement of everything.

Shiro sighed. “I couldn’t hold them off—which is crazy because my dad _hates_ flying. I guess their only child having a baby is a big deal or something.”

“Or something,” Lance grinned, before a grimace overtook it. “Oooh fuck.”

Shiro was at his side in a flash, his dark eyes concerned.

“It’s fine, it’s fine—it’s not that much worse than the false ones I’ve been having.”

It was not fine, and it was definitely much worse.

Eighteen hours later, Lance was sweaty, hungry and pissed off.

“Why won’t this baby get out of me!” Lance raged, panting in exertion. 

His mother tried to brush the dripping hair out of his face, but Lance jerked out of her range.

“They’ll come Baby, just give it time.”

“I have!” He whined, collapsing back against the hospital bed.

Shiro had left the room a couple hours ago, with some sort of explanation that Lance had ignored. At the time, he wouldn’t have cared if Shiro said he was going back into space right that minute. 

Now though, all he wanted was Shiro back in the room, his stupid alpha scent soothing both he and the baby. 

“Have you picked names?” His mother asked, trying to distract him.

Lance sighed, trying to breathe through what was sure to be another contraction. After he’d moaned and panted through it, he turned to her – shaking his head.

“No, we—I’m not sure,” he closed his eyes, ignoring the nurse at his side – Nurse Trevor was apparently off for the day. “I’m not sure what their last name will be.”

His mother’s eyebrows rose in surprise. “What does Takashi want?”

She had insisted on calling him by his first name since they’d been reintroduced last week.

Lance shrugged thoughtlessly. “I dunno, I haven’t asked.”

She tsked. “Lance, these are the kinds of things you need to talk over with your partner.” 

He waved her away. “Yeah, just like I should have told him I was pregnant. You’re not telling me anything I don’t know, mom!”

He ignored the glare she shot his way. “You’re in labor, so I’m going to let your tone slide.”

Chastened, Lance deflated. “Where _is_ Shiro? He’s supposed to be here!”

“He went to meet—”

A throat cleared in the doorway, interrupting them both. 

Shiro stood there slightly sheepish, before stepping out of the way to reveal two petite Japanese women both smiling a mile wide.

“Lance this is my mom, Yumena, and dad, Hiroko. Guys, this is Lance.”

Lance’s first thought was _how the hell did Shiro end up so tall_ before he was flushing with nervousness.

Shiro _would_ bring his parents around for the first time while Lance was covered in sweat and other gross bodily fluids. 

“Oh, aren’t you just a darling,” Yumena said, stepping into the room. “We’re so happy to meet you, Lance!”

Her wife followed at a sedate pace, and when she spoke it was heavily accented. “You’re feeling okay?”

Lance nodded with a smile, a straight lie that was quickly revealed when another contraction tore through. 

Shiro’s mother was as touchy-feely as Shiro was, which Lance found adorable. She and his mom immediately launched into stories about their own labors.

Before he knew it though, the contractions were running so quickly together it was like they never stopped. The nurses were pushing out anyone who wasn’t Shiro, and Doctor Blake was pulling on latex gloves. 

“You ready to do this, Lance?”

Lance, who had been shot up with an epidural not much earlier waved his hand regally. “Lesgo, baby,” he slurred. 

Shiro took his hand and smiled. “You got this.”

He did, in fact, got it.

+

When Lance drifted out of whatever post-labor-adrenaline and painkiller cocktail he was in, it was to the sobering realization that there was no longer a baby inside of him.

Sitting up with a gasp, which was to say, tipping his head forward and moaning dramatically, Lance opened his eyes.

Shiro was sitting in the chair next to him, holding a little bundle of blankets, and what Lance could only assume was their baby.

He looked up at the sound of Lance’s wakefulness. 

“Welcome back,” he whispered, clearly trying not to speak too loudly. 

Lance didn’t remember falling asleep – or passing out more likely. He remembered the doctor finally pulling the baby free, hearing a sharp cry, and that was it. 

“You lost more blood than was usual, but the doctor was prepared—I guess it’s common with these types of pregnancies.”

Lance nodded, he’d been told that it was a possibility. 

Shiro looked back down at the baby, reaching up to brush their face with a finger. Finally, Lance could take no more.

“Well?”

Shiro grinned at him, standing up smoothly to pass the baby into Lance’s arms. 

“Your mom was right, an omega—hormone levels suggest male.” 

Lance sighed, taking in the sight of their baby. His eyes were closed, cheeks round and pink. Shiro reached out to lift the blanket, revealing thick, dark hair with a shock of white in the front.

Lance gasped.

“Yeah, apparently it’s genetic,” Shiro shrugged. “Something about the pigmentation in the follicles.”

He pushed back the white bangs with a prosthetic finger. “Sorry, sweetheart,” Shiro spoke to the baby.

“I love it,” Lance declared. 

Readjusting his hold, he giggled a little. “Looks like he was snowed on.”

Shiro slid next to him, sitting on the bed. “Yuki would be a nice name, it means snow. I mean, if you’re okay with a Japanese name—”

“I like that,” Lance told him, and he did. “Yuki Shirogane.”

Shiro’s face turned to him. “Shirogane? What about McClain?”

Lance shrugged. “There’s already so many McClain’s—I’m drowning in nieces and nephews. You’re the only Shirogane…and you deserve to see your name carry on.”

He smiled at Shiro, eyes tired but happy, snuggling into his side.

Shiro relaxed, taking in the face of his sleeping son. “I guess it will make it easier when we get married.”

Lance swallowed a breath, immediately choking. Shiro was quick to pat at his back soothingly.

“I’m holding the baby Shiro!” 

They were still giggling when Yuki woke up.

+

“I have never seen you look so uncomfortable,” Lance commented before shoving a fork full of brownie in his mouth.

“I don’t want to hurt him!” Keith whispered, as if the baby in his lap could sense weakness. 

Which he totally could. 

“He’s nine months old Keith, I’m more worried about him ripping out that mullet of yours.”

Wide eyed, Keith handed the baby to Coran before he pulled his hair up into a ponytail.

“Active little thing!” Coran commented, bouncing Yuki on his knee as he held the baby’s tiny hands in his own. 

It was the second anniversary of Allura’s passing, and Yuki’s first trip into space – something both parents considered a legitimate milestone in their son’s development.

“Already trying to destroy our home,” Shiro commented, coming to join them where there all sat – on a blanket in the grass, right below Allura’s memorial.

“I told you not to go with a new house while he’s still a baby!” Pidge chimed in. “Should’ve let Yuki destroy the garrison housing while you had the chance.”

“I’ll be sure to consult you on all parenting and household concerns in the future,” Shiro rolled his eyes. He’d barely gotten a bite of his own brownie before Yuki was crawling out of Coran’s lap and heading for Shiro’s. 

Shoving the entire brownie into his mouth in one bite – much to the disappointment on his son – Shiro held the baby securely in his lap.

Lance laid back against the blanket, looking at the bright sky and soft clouds above. There was a buzzing of some kind of insect-like alien, and he could smell the sweet scent of juniberry flowers on the wind. 

He smiled up at Allura’s statue, wishing she could be there – that he could watch his son toddle over to her and see the way she’d pick him up, smiling bright and joyful.

He missed her, and he still loved her – he always would. But he wouldn’t have traded his current life for anything.

**Author's Note:**

> [come say hi to me on my tumblr](http://thinkpinkwrites.tumblr.com)
> 
> [i'm on twitter now too!](https://twitter.com/thinkpinkwrites)


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